Railroad Accident Attorney

Saxony-Anhalt train accident

2011-02-03T13:39:00.000-08:00

The 2011 Saxony-Anhalt train accident occurred on January 29, 2011, when a freight train and a passenger train collided near Hordorf in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Several carriages derailed in the collision. Ten people were killed, and 23 people were wounded. Initial reports of 33 injured personswere later corrected to 23.Around 200 rescue workers were at the collision site, which is around 125 miles (201 km) south-west of Berlin, the Associated Press reported.

The commuter train with approximately 45 to 50 passengers on board was on a single track at a speed of approximately 62 miles per hour (100 km/h), where it collided with the freight train, which had a speed of about 50 miles per hour (80 km/h). The impact crushed parts of the passenger train. The cause of the accident, which occurred at about 22:30 CET (21:30 UTC), were not immediately known, though an investigation was launched into the incident. The crash caused several cars from the passenger train to derail, while the freight train remained on the track. According to Xinhua, "clothes, magazines, bags, shard of glass and broken seats scattered around the bush near the two trains. On the field whitened with snow and ice, dark red bloodstains and black imprints could be seen where the bodies used to be placed.
Since many people were severely injured, it was considered likely that the death toll could rise in the immediate aftermath of the incident. By 31 January, only two of the dead had been identified, as many of those killed had not had IDs with them. At least some of the people killed were of foreign nationality.

Provided By: wikipedia.org
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Prosecutors investigate driver in railroad crash

2011-01-31T10:42:00.000-08:00

Prosecutors say they are opening an investigation into the driver of a cargo train that was involved in a head-on crash that left 10 people dead and injured 23 others in eastern Germany on Saturday.

The prosecutors' office in Magdeburg said Monday that it was investigating the 41-year-old driver on suspicion of negligent homicide and bodily injury caused by negligence and endangerment of railroad traffic.

The office said witnesses told investigators the driver may have run through a stop signal and caused the crash.

Police said 10 of the 23 injured have been released from hospital, and a criminal investigation of the accident site in Hordorf has been finished. They said among the injured were two Georgians, one Portuguese and one Brazilian citizen.

Story provided by: taiwannews.com.tw

The Great Train Hoist: Derailed Train Re-railed

2011-01-28T11:27:00.000-08:00

It took roughly three hours Thursday afternoon to re-rail a New Canaan branch train that slid into and over a bumper stop in New Canaan Station Wednesday night.

The train was scheduled to arrive at the station at 12:27 a.m. According to Metro-North Railroad spokeswoman Marjorie Anders, the engineer was facing white-out conditions entering the station, and when he attempted to bring the five-car train to a stop it slid on icy rails. The two leading wheels continued past the end of the track and onto the ground.

The train tore away the bumper stop, but did not reach Park Street.

A Metro-North wreck crew from North White Plains, N.Y., began the task of re-railing the two wheels at around 12:30 p.m.

Using a crane to lift the affected car, they aligned the derailed wheels with the track. A diesel-electric locomotive coupled to the other end of the train then gradually pulled it forward until the wheels were over the rails and the crane could lower them back onto the track.

Metro-North officials at the scene reported the wheels were re-railed at 2:10 p.m.

Anders said two passengers were on the train at the time of the accident and there were no injuries to them or the train crew.

The derailed car sustained major damage. A Metro-North employee at the scene said that after the lead car slid into and over the bumper stop, the jagged ends of the stop pierced the floor of the car. As a result, a railroad employee had to climb under the train and use a cutting torch to remove portions of the stop dug into the car's undercarriage.

At about 3:30 p.m., two diesel-locomotives pulled the train out of the station and towed it the railroad’s heavy repairs shop in Stamford.

Anders noted that, unfortunately, the damaged car is part of an M-6 triplet, meaning the accident caused the loss of three cars when the railroad is having difficulty finding enough cars to meet its schedules.

Anders said the train’s data recorder will be read, and its contents will be examined as part of Metro-North’s investigation of the accident.

Story provided by: newcanaan.patch.com

Railroad crackdown results in eight citations for trespassing

2011-01-27T11:52:00.000-08:00

OPELOUSAS — St. Landry Parish authorities issued eight citations and issued three warnings for trespassing on railroad property, officials said Wednesday.

The crackdown was part of a joint effort by the St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office, Union Pacific Railroad Police and the nonprofit Operation Lifesaver.

The citations were issued to motorists who allegedly failed to obey railroad crossing signals, or were in violation of safety laws at non-crossing railroad property, St. Landry Parish Capt. Jimmy Darbonne said.

"We're not doing this to write tickets," Darbonne said. "We're doing this to make people aware of the dangers of disobeying railroad signals, or walking on railroad tracks. They can get killed."

St. Landry Parish is one of 12 "target parishes" in Louisiana, because of the prevalence of train-related accidents here, said Pat Edwards, executive director and state coordinator for Louisiana Operation Lifesaver. From 2005 to 2009, there were 23 train-vehicle crashes in the parish, according to the Federal Railroad Administration.

Louisiana ranked sixth nationally in train-vehicle crashes. In the first 10 months of 2010, there were 93 such accidents in the state, with 13 fatalities and 54 injuries.

As for trespassing incidents — accidents on railroad tracks and property not at crossings — there were nine fatalities with six injured in the state.

Since 2005, the parish has made a concerted effort to increase awareness and education and, in turn, make railroad areas safer.

"We go everywhere from preschools to nursing homes, and we have a program for every age group," said St. Landry Parish Detective Eddie Thibodeaux. "We're just trying to make people aware of the dangers."

Darbonne said unmarked, unlit rail crossings are the most dangerous. He spent 22 years as a trooper in the Louisiana State Police, and has worked more than his share of train crashes.

"I was rising on one of these Operation Lifesaver events years ago, and the train hit a vehicle that tried to outrun it. It was terrible."

Operation Lifesaver is national, nonprofit education and awareness program dedicated to ending tragic collisions, fatalities and injuries at highway-rail grade crossings and on railroad rights of way.

Operation Lifesaver promotes education for public awareness at crossings, enforcement of the traffic laws relating to crossings, and Engineering for continued research and innovation to improve the safety of railroad crossings.

Operation Lifesaver checkpoints occur quarterly in the parish.

Violations of state law governing incidents on railroad tracks can carry up to 90 days in jail and fines of up to $500.

Story provided by: dailyworld.com

CSX to Invest $2 Billion to Strengthen Its Rail Network

2011-01-27T09:10:00.000-08:00

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. Jan. 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- CSX Corporation will invest $2 billion to increase the quality, flexibility and capacity of its rail network, the company announced as part of its quarterly and full-year earnings report today. That's on top of the $1.8 billion the company invested in 2010, a year in which operating income was $3.1 billion.

"CSX believes in the ability of the U.S. economy to continue growing and is committed to supporting its customers as that occurs," said Michael J. Ward, CSX chairman, president and chief executive officer. "This is an important time for CSX and other companies to take stock in what we need to do together to drive growth and increase U.S. competitiveness in the global marketplace while creating jobs."

The company also said today that it will increase employment by one to two percent in 2011 as business levels continue to return in an improving economy. CSX currently employs 30,000 people who earn highly competitive wages and benefits.

CSX Corporation, based in Jacksonville, Fla., is a leading transportation company providing rail, intermodal and rail-to-truck transload services. The company's transportation network spans approximately 21,000 miles with service to 23 eastern states and the District of Columbia, and connects to more than 70 ocean, river and lake ports.

Story provided by: usrailroadnews.com

Injured Railroad Workers Face Challenges When Hurt on the Job

2011-01-26T10:41:00.000-08:00

Injured Railroad Workers Face Challenges When Hurt on the Job

Railroad employees often perform dangerous work in environments rife with potential for disaster. In the early 1900s, work conditions for rail employees were so hazardous that Congress passed the Federal Employment Liability Act, commonly known as FELA. FELA provides a uniform system of safety expectations and legal redress for railroad workers injured on the job.

However, a recent investigation conducted by the Minneapolis Star Tribune and nonprofit journalism organization ProPublica found that injured railway workers increasingly face significant challenges in obtaining compensation for their injuries. In several lawsuits against a major railroad company for employee injuries, key evidence has been lost or destroyed in the hands of the railroad company.

Federal Employment Liability Act (FELA)

Employees covered by FELA are not covered by the regular workers' compensation statute. Instead, rail workers injured on the job must pursue a claim for legal compensation through FELA.

Through a FELA lawsuit, an injured rail worker may obtain compensation for:
-Past and future medical treatment
-Past and future wage loss
-Past and future pain, suffering and mental distress.

Generally, under workers' compensation, anyone injured while working is compensated, regardless of who was at fault for the injury. Unlike workers' compensation, FELA states that railroad companies are liable for injuries to their employees only if the railroad company was negligent or failed to meet applicable safety standards.

Comparative Negligence for Injured Railroad Workers

In addition, the amount of money an injured rail worker receives for a successful FELA claim is reduced by the worker's percentage of fault in causing the accident. For example, after a trial, a jury may award $100,000 to an injured a railroad worker. Because FELA uses a system called comparative negligence, the jury will then allocate the percentage of fault between the injured worker and the railroad company. If the jury finds the employee is 25 percent at fault, the award will be reduced by 25 percent to $75,000.

Railroad Injury Statistics and Liability Costs

The Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Company (BNSF) operates one of the largest railroad networks in the U.S. The company moves freight throughout the U.S. and Canada, generating $14 billion in revenue in 2009, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune also reported that accidents and work injuries are a significant expense for BNSF; its insurance subsidiary paid more than $100 million each year to resolve legal claims against BNSF from 2007 to 2009.

According to the Federal Railroad Administration, more than 500 people have been killed and almost 1,700 injured in about 4,100 accidents involving BNSF trains or crossings in the last 10 years. BNSF stated that civil judgments against the company were issued in 118 cases over the same time period.

Rail Companies' Legal Misconduct

According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune and ProPublica injured BNSF employees have encountered significant difficulty in litigation with the railroad company since 2000.

BNSF or its lawyers have been cited for legal misconduct in 13 cases involving train collisions or workplace injuries, primarily for obstructive discovery practices including losing, withholding or destroying evidence. In four cases, judges declared mistrials or ordered new trials because the company or its lawyers had engaged in significant misconduct.

One example of losing evidence comes from a Kansas case, in which BNSF was accused of removing evidence from an accident scene where a company brakeman was severely injured when hit by a train. Two BNSF crew members testified during trial that a supervisor said he would keep an oncoming train out of the work area. BNSF claimed that the crew was never told the train would be held, and it faulted the brakeman for stepping into the train's path.

According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, BNSF did not locate the brakeman's two-way radio the night of the accident and then later lost the radio when someone found it and turned it in. Since one of the key issues in the case was the brakeman's location was when he struck, having the radio would have helped accident-reconstruction experts determine where exactly he was. In addition to losing this key evidence, BNSF gave conflicting answers as to whether its workers marked the place on the tracks where the train stopped, which also would have assisted with the accident reconstruction.

Another example of lost evidence comes from a case in Missouri, in which BNSF lost the ladder involved in an employee accident. A worker was cleaning windows in a locomotive shop when he claimed his ladder collapsed, requiring him to have back surgery and take narcotics for chronic pain.

During the trial, BNSF offered another ladder as evidence to prove the ladder was in safe working condition. After the injured cleaner testified that the substitute ladder was completely different from the ladder he was using at the time of his injury, the judge refused to allow it as evidence, reported the newspaper. The jury awarded the worker $5.5 million, an award that was later upheld by the Missouri Court of Appeals.

BNSF is not the only railroad company cited for misconduct in legal proceedings. According to a 2004 New York Times report, Union Pacific was sanctioned seven times for destroying or failing to preserve evidence from July 2001 to January 2003.

As the Minneapolis Star Tribune and ProPublica investigation demonstrates, lawsuits against railroad companies can be challenging. Therefore, the assistance of a lawyer experienced in FELA claims and railroad injury cases is invaluable. If you or a loved one has been injured while working for a railroad company, contact an attorney experienced in handling FELA claims to discuss your legal options.

Story provided by: auto-mobi.info

Metro may face legal action over train crash

2011-01-20T07:14:00.000-08:00

VICTORIA'S transport safety watchdog is considering legal action against rail operator Metro and one of its drivers over a collision near Craigieburn last year in which a Melbourne suburban train rammed into a stationery freight train.

The driver of the suburban train failed to follow signalling rules, which required him to be travelling at 25 km/h - instead of about 60 km/h.

Investigations into the crash by both Public Transport Safety Victoria (PTSV) and the Department of Transport's chief investigator are complete, and may be released as soon as tomorrow.

Metro has already been forced to pay $1.9 million to repair the damage done to the suburban Comeng train that was involved in the crash.

PTSV director Alan Osborne told The Age he was in discussion with barristers about legal action against ''the parties'' involved in the incident.

He said his investigation had focused on ''whether Metro and the driver did the job they should have done in terms of the Rail Safety Act''.

Five of the suburban train's 15 passengers were hospitalised and rail services were stopped for at least two days after the collision in May last year. The outbound Pacific National freight train had stopped at a red light signal near Craigieburn station.

Metro sacked its driver concerned for failing to stop at a red signal, exceeding the 25 km/h speed limit, and for failing to co-operate with the investigation into the crash.

Mr Osborne said he was considering action against ''all parties'', an apparent reference to both the driver and Metro as the operator of the rail system.

''I am not saying I am targeting Metro in any one specific sense but I'm looking very seriously at 'were all the right things done'?''

The Craigieburn crash was one of a series of rail safety scares on the Melbourne network last year. In March last year, after a signalling failure, a Metro train collided with a freight train at Ringwood station. A report released by the chief investigator this week found poor communication among rail staff had contributed to the accident.

A report by Metro in 2009, before it took over from Connex, warned the former Brumby government that Melbourne's poor rail conditions ''have the potential to cause derailment of trains … with catastrophic consequences''.

Story provided by: theage.com.au

Ex-railman averts train accident

2011-01-19T09:26:00.000-08:00

JODHPUR: A retired railway employee saved lives of more than 1,000 passengers of Ranakpur Express, travelling between Bandra and Bikaner, by alerting the driver to a fracture in the railway track near Rajasthan's Rajkiawas station.

On Monday, Ranakpur Express (Train no. 4708) crossed Marwar junction and was heading towards Pali around 8.30am. When it was close to Rajkiawas station, the driver saw an old man rushing towards the train waving a saffron cloth. The driver immediately stopped the train.

While on his way to the farm, Tulsi Ram, a septuagenerian, had spotted a fracture on the track and was frantically waving at the driver to stop the train. "I knew the Ranakpur Express was about to cross the way. If the train crossed that stretch, there would have been accident causing loss of lives and property. So, I ran to stop the train," Tulsi Ram said.

The passengers gave cash reward to Tulsi Ram for averting an accident. However, the railways is yet to acknowledge its former employee's effort.

Story provided by: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Train derails on Elgin south side

2011-01-18T07:27:00.000-08:00

Elgin and railroad officials were on the scene of a freight train derailment Sunday afternoon that toppled several cars along tracks on the city’s south side. | Bill O'Neill~For Sun-Times Media

ELGIN — Metra commuters on the Milwaukee West line experienced minor delays Monday morning after a derailment Sunday afternoon “mangled” a portion of the tracks on Elgin’s south side. According to the Metra web site, the Train No. 2228, secheduled to leave Big Timber at 8:36 a.m,. was delayed 14 to 17 minutes.

Eight cars, all carrying steel cables, derailed just before 2 p.m. on the Milwaukee West line, a Canadian Pacific Railroad line, at Raymond Street and Purify Drive — the entrance to the Fox River Water Reclamation District plant.

According to the Metra web site, the Train No. 2228, secheduled to leave Big Timber at 8:36 a.m,. was delayed 14 to 17 minutes Monday morning.

According to Elgin police public information officer Sue Olafson, a passerby reported the derailment before the railroad reported the accident. While the 71-car train was carrying some hazardous materials, none of those cars was involved, and no injuries were reported, authorities said.

The train was westbound when the derailment occurred, Olafson said. Officials from the Canadian Pacific Railroad and Metra commuter rail agency were investigating the cause, and she was not aware whether the National Transportation Safety Board would also become involved in any investigation.

As of Sunday afternoon, all Metra passengers were being bused from the Bartlett station to Elgin’s National and Chicago Street stations (Metra does not run to the Big Timber station on Sunday). And busing may have to continue through Monday, officials said.

Police blocked off Raymond Street between Bluff City Boulevard and Kenyon Road, and St. Charles Street from Elgin Avenue to Kenyon Road, while the cars were removed and the rails replaced.

It was unknown as of about 5:30 p.m. whether the Bears game might mean more people taking the train out of Chicago on Sunday, added Metra spokesperson Meg Reile. “I don’t know how many went down for the Bears game, but we will be busing them back. It may take a little longer, and we have less-frequent service on Sunday, so … . It would have been a far bigger impact if (the derailment) had been a weekday before evening rush.”

Once the derailed cars were out of the way, crews were to replace the damaged track, she said. “We will work through the night, but we don’t know about tomorrow’s rush,” commuting times or schedules, Reile said.

She encouraged riders to check TV and radio reports in the morning to find out what the schedule might be. Riders also can sign up on the Metrarail.com website for service updates. “A MyMetra account can get notices to e-mail or cell phones for status of their services,” Reile said. “We do offer updates for select line and individual stations.”

Elgin police are seeking any witnesses to the train derailment and asked anyone with information to call 847-289-2700.

Story provided by: couriernews.suntimes.com

Nebraska Man Injured in Train Car Accident

2011-01-14T11:27:00.001-08:00

Omaha, NE: An Omaha, Nebraska man was recently injured in a train car accident when he became stuck between a guardrail and the car at the MidAmerican power plant in Iowa, the Omaha World-Herald reports.

Michael D. McGillen Jr., 28, was brought to the Creighton University Medical Center by a medical helicopter in critical condition. According to Dwayne Riche of the Pottawattamie County Sheriff's Office, rescue officials arrived at the scene at approximately 3:00 am.

McGillen is reportedly an Iowa Interstate Railroad employee, according to the news provider.

Riche explained that the train car was backing up toward an entrance to Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE), located on the power plant's property. The train then reportedly went through a closed gate and bent a guardrail, causing McGillen to be pinned. Riche added that the gate was supposed to have been opened up by an employee at SIRE.

After employees could not free McGillen, Lewis Township Rescue workers removed the guardrail in order to get him out, the news provider said.

According to the The Associated Press, the Iowa Interstate Railroad is investigating the accident.

Story provided by: lawyersandsettlements.com

Tractor Trailer Driver Dead after Pulling Rig in Front of Amtrak Train Bound for New York City

2011-01-13T11:20:00.000-08:00

The driver of a tractor-trailer is dead today after driving his rig around the railroad crossing gates and into the path of a passenger train, says an article by Associated Press.

51-year-old Randolph Todd, of Sheppard, TX, disregarded railroad flashing warning lights and drove his tractor-trailer around the closed railroad crossing gates in Dunkirk, NY in Chautauqua County. An Amtrak passenger train carrying 236 passengers and 16 crew struck Todd’s tractor-trailer in the passenger side of the cab as it crossed the tracks. The impact cut the tractor-trailer in half, leaving parts on each side of the tracks.

The coroner pronounced Todd dead on the scene, reports Buffalo News.

Todd was delivering chicken to the Nestle Purina manufacturing facility just yards from the railroad crossing where the accident occurred.

Involved in the crash was Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited en route from Chicago to New York City. The passengers and crew were uninjured. Train passengers remained on the train for five hours during the accident investigation and while waiting for a new engine to replace the damaged one.

Lew Thompson & Son Trucking of Huntsville, Ark owned the tractor-trailer.

Story provided by: newyorkcity.injuryboard.com

Driver slides on snowy hill, crashes on Light Rail tracks

2011-01-13T07:09:00.000-08:00

TUKWILA, Wash. – The driver of a car on a snowy, slick hill lost control and ended up crashing onto the Sound Transit Central Link Light Rail tracks Tuesday night, causing a disruption in train service.

The accident happened around 9 p.m. along Interstate 5 at S. 144th Street.
Tukwila Police say the car was headed eastbound on S. 144th Street, which is a large hill. The car slid through an intersection, over an embankment and onto the tracks The car ended up on its roof.
The driver was able to get out and was not seriously hurt.

Sound Transit set up a bus bridge to ferry Light Rail riders between the Airport, Tukwila and Rainier Beach stations. Service was back to normal by 11 p.m.

Story provided by: king5.com

Train accident in Ralston

2011-01-11T12:04:00.001-08:00

Ralston, Iowa -- No injuries are being reported and there is only minor damage after a Union Pacific Freight Train hit a locomotive on the main tracks near a grain elevator in Ralston. The accident happened around 9:00 a.m. Monday when the locomotive left the elevator to go on the main line. The freight train was headed from Chicago to California while hauling 76 cars full of vehicles and was going about 20 mph. There was no derailment.

Train vs. semi

2011-01-10T08:47:00.000-08:00

A BNSF train struck a semitrailer Friday afternoon, but the driver received only minor injuries and was not taken to a hospital.

Photo by NIck Adams

A BNSF train accident that happened on Abingdon Street just south of 3rd Street on Friday.

Truck driver Kevin Kniss, 54, Lanark, was headed to the ADM facility at 1021 S. Henderson St. when he was struck by a slow-moving westbound train while crossing the tracks. The accident occurred at 1:09 p.m. on Abingdon Street south of Third Street. The driver received only minor injuries and was not taken to a hospital.

Story provided by: galesburg.com

A train wreck of a decision

2011-01-10T07:01:00.000-08:00

It's easy enough to miss a train. You just show up late at the depot.

But how do you miss - i.e., not see -- a train that's bearing down on you at a crossing? Even Johnny Cash in his Folsom Prison cell heard the train a-coming.

Sure, your car might stall on the tracks, or you might miscalculate trying to beat the train to the crossing. But, unless you're not paying attention, you're not likely to miss a train coming down on you.

Guy Webb sure did, though. He drove his truck onto a private crossing in Iron County, Mo. in 2007 and collided with a Union Pacific train. Guy suffered massive injuries and his brother, James, in the passenger seat, was killed.

Guy Webb blamed Union Pacific for the accident and sued the railroad. James Webb's daughter, Misty, decided her uncle was at least partly to blame. She sued the railroad and her uncle. The uncle settled with his niece and the two joined forces against Union Pacific.

Armed with video footage of the accident from a camera mounted on the train, the railroad argued that Guy Webb ran a stop sign posted at the private crossing, stopped on the company's tracks, and then accelerated into the train. Union Pacific also contended that both Webb brothers were under the influence of the drug Ecstasy at the time.

Madison County Circuit Judge Andreas Matoesian refused to allow evidence of the brothers' drug use and rejected the railroad's crucial distinction between private and public crossings, which require different levels of caution. As a result, the jury found in favor of the Webbs.

Union Pacific is appealing the $1.25 million judgment, arguing that the distinction between public and private crossings is the essential question in the case.

You've got to wonder how Judge Matoesian could miss something so obvious. It's almost like missing a train.

Story provided by: stclairrecord.com

Police identify victims in fatal car-train crash

2011-01-07T12:07:00.001-08:00

Police have released the names of the men involved in a car-train collision in the Township of Montague on Wednesday. Logan Stoddard, 21, of Smiths Falls was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Elmer Miller, 26, of Montague Township was taken to Smiths Falls Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The accident, involving a freight train, happened at 12:45 p.m.

Story provided by: ottawacitizen.com

Train Accident Victim Identified

2011-01-06T10:05:00.000-08:00

16-Year-Old Humberto Moreno Wearing Headphones at Time of Accident

The victim of the train accident that occurred near the Fairview Avenue overpass in Goleta yesterday has been identified as 16-year-old Humberto Moreno, a local high school student. He lived in the unincorporated area of Santa Barbara just outside Goleta city limits.

The incident is being classified as an accident, said Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department spokesperson Brad McVay, and investigators are still trying to find the other individuals who were seen on the tracks with the victim yesterday.

Moreno, reported McVay, was in the possession of an MP3 player and had headphones on, but it’s not known if that had anything to do with the accident.

Story provided by: independent.com

Teen killed trying to ''beat train'' across tracks

2011-01-05T12:23:00.000-08:00

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- State Police called the Lincoln County incident where a local teen lost his life trying to beat a train at an intersection "a horrible accident."

Trooper S.L Bartram said it happened about 8 p.m. Monday on Nine Mile Creek Road in the Midkiff area. A 16-year-old Branchland boy was driving alone in a 2000 Chevrolet Blazer heading east on the road coming from W.Va. 10 when he came to a train crossing, where a southbound CSX train was approaching.

The boy tried to speed up in effort to beat the train to the crossing, troopers said, but he didn't make it.

Bartram said the train struck the SUV, killing the boy inside.

The train had been going roughly 35 mph and tried to stop when the workers spotted the vehicle. Bartram said no injuries were reported aboard the train, but workers were shaken up from the incident.

"They hit the brakes," Bartram said. "They did the best they could stopping the train but it takes about a mile to stop them."

The trooper said the crash appears to be "a total accident," and that there were no indications to lead them to believe otherwise.

Bartram urged motorists to use caution when approaching railroad crossings and to stop if a train is approaching.

"Don't try to beat a train," he said. "Honest to God, if you see a train coming you should stop. Not only is it the law but it's just plain common sense."

Troopers have not released the boy's name, but multiple postings on the social networking website Facebook identify the teen as James Sias.

Story provided by: dailymail.com

WMATA receives $150 million from FTA for safety repairs

2011-01-03T09:05:00.000-08:00

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has received a $150 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Transit Administration to replace old "1000-Series" rail cars.

Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia will provide $150 million in matching local funds to help pay for the car replacements, USDOT officials said in a prepared statement.

The National Transportation Safety Board previously cited the 1000-Series cars as a contributing factor to the number of fatalities and the severity of passengers' injuries caused by a June 2009 Red Line train accident near Fort Totten Station.

About $79.3 million of the grant will be used to buy as many as 300 new 7000-Series rail cars; WMATA will use $44.4 million to pay for track rehabilitation and apply the remainder toward other infrastructure projects, such as Metrorail station improvements, rehabilitation of track maintenance equipment, replacement of track switching equipment, and elevator and escalator repairs.

Story provided by: progressiverailroading.com

Carriages from train that jumped rails are righted

2010-12-30T14:09:00.001-08:00

A FORMAL investigation could be launched into how a passenger train came off the rails in a Todmorden tunnel.
The Rail Accident Investigation Branch is conducting a preliminary examination at Summit Tunnel, Walsden, where the First TransPennine Express train came off the tracks in the early hours of Tuesday with 45 passengers and two crew aboard.

A spokesman from the Department for Transport said: "Officers have been to the scene and based on the findings of their examination they may choose to investigate."

The 12.38am service from Manchester Airport to York hit a block of ice, reportedly the size of a car, before the first of three carriages jumped the track and veered into the tunnel wall.

The ice is believed to have fallen from an air vent.

British Transport Police said it would be working alongside the investigation branch.

It is believed the ice fell from an air vent in the tunnel roof. The line was shut for almost 23 hours.

The carriages were righted using a piece of equipment known as a bruff just before 1.30pm. The line reopened at 11pm.

The day's services had already been hit by a conductors' strike but were back to normal yesterday.

Story provided by: halifaxcourier.co.uk

New Court Date for Case Against Network Rail and Jarvis Rail

2010-12-30T09:26:00.001-08:00

Network Rail and Jarvis Rail, the maintenance company, are due to appear in court on a new date over the Potters Bar train crash that happened in 2002. The firms are facing health and safety charges in the case, which was brought by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR). The case was suppose to go in front of magistrates on January 7, but the regulator says the proceedings will start on February 21 in Hertfordshire instead.

In the May 10, 2002 incident, 7 people died when a West Anglia Great Northern express train from London to King’s Lynn derailed – one of the deaths was a pedestrian. Jarvis Rail, which was contracted to maintain the section of track where the derailment occurred, went into administration this past March. The ORR said on Wednesday that the company’s administrators provided the essential consent to allow them to proceed with the criminal case against the company.

Overall responsibility for the track has rested with Railtrack, whose functions weren’t taken over by Network Rail until October 2002. After an inquest into the disaster, which occurred earlier this year, the ORR said that they were going to prosecute the rail operator and maintenance company under a section of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act. A report from the Health and Safety Executive said that poor maintenance was the cause of the accident.

Many people welcome the proceedings. Transport Salaried Staff Association (TSSA) union leader Gerry Doherty said in November, when the announcement was made, that they will finally find who is responsible for the tragedy.

Man narrowly escapes train accident in Reno County

2010-12-29T13:38:00.001-08:00

(RENO COUNTY, Kan) —

A Hutchinson man is hospitalized after running his truck into a parked train late Tuesday. It happened in the 800 block of South Kent Road.

Authorities say 30-year-old Samuel Gress was driving north in the area just before 9:00, but didn't see the train stopped on the tracks. The train then started moving, dragging the truck with Gress inside along.

Authorities say Gress was able to escape through the back window of his truck, then walked to a nearby residence where he made contact with the homeowner and collapsed. Gress was taken to the hospital.

The train continued eastbound until notified that sparks were seen coming from one of the cars. Deputies found the train nearly five miles east of the accident location, and the truck was still stuck to the train.

Burrton Fire and members from BNSF inspected the train car and were on scene until a BNSF crew safely removed the vehicle from the train.

There were several other pieces of railroad equipment along the tracks that were damaged from the vehicle being dragged along the side of the tracks.

The crash is still being investigated and charges are possible.

MetroLink train hits stalled truck in Pagedale, service normal today

2010-12-23T12:47:00.000-08:00

David Carson Wednesday December 22, 2010--Rescue personnel help guide people off of a Metrolink train that was involved in a crash just south of N. Market Street in Pagedale on Wednesday. David Carson dcarson@post-dispatch.com

UPDATE 5:45 a.m. MetroLink is running regular service this morning across both tracks at the scene of the accident yesterday, a spokeswoman said. Service was restored at 12:58 a.m. today.

PAGEDALE • Several passengers on a MetroLink train were treated for injuries after the train struck a tow truck stalled at a crossing here Wednesday.

Witnesses said the eastbound train hit the flatbed truck at the North Market crossing around 5:30 p.m. The crash did not cause the train to derail.

Metro spokeswoman Dianne Williams said she was told that the impact jostled the train's passengers but that none of the injuries appeared to be serious.

She said no one was in the truck.

"An unoccupied vehicle stalled on the tracks," Williams said. "We could not stop in time to avoid hitting it."

Ray Friem, Metro's chief operating officer of transit services, was at the crash scene Wednesday evening. He said that he didn't know how many passengers had been hurt and that the crash was still under investigation.

"I don't have any specifics yet," he said.

The MetroLink tracks between the Wellston and North Hanley stations were closed while the crash was investigated. Passengers were routed around the closed tracks by bus for several hours.

Addison Holzmeyer of Florissant said he was on the train heading to the Mizzou-Illinois basketball game at Scottrade Center when the train hit the truck.

"I felt the train stop, then we felt (the accident)," he said.

Devin Barnett, of St. Louis, who also was on the train, said windows shattered after the impact. He counted at least five people transported by ambulance to hospitals. Some, like him, signed waivers refusing treatment.

"I feel like somebody hit me," he said. "But I'm going to be all right."

The truck hit by the train had "Mr. JP Towing" on the side. No one with the firm could be reached Wednesday night.

The crash left the tow truck wedged against a pole about 200 feet south of where North Market crosses the MetroLink tracks at street level.

Barnett said the tow truck's driver was still there when passengers were allowed to exit the train.

"He said he wasn't in the truck when it got hit," Barnett said.

The crash was near the MetroLink station on St. Charles Rock Road.

Story provided by: stltoday.com

Friends, family remember man killed by train

2010-12-23T07:04:00.000-08:00

Jeanne and William E. Kingrey. Man killed by a train in trenton.

44-year-old Camden man was carrying gear to his job site when he was struck from behind.

TRENTON — People who know William E. Kingrey say it’s fitting he will be buried in a Cleveland Browns jersey.

Kingrey, 44, of Camden, who was fatally struck Monday morning by a CSX train in Trenton while walking to his job site, is to be buried on Christmas Eve in his Colt McCoy No. 12 jersey.

“That was his favorite player. He was excited when Texas Longhorn Colt McCoy became part of the Browns. He loved it,” said Kingrey’s pastor, the Rev. Greg Jackson of the First Southern Baptist Church in Camden.

At around 9 a.m. Monday, Kingrey, an Asplundh Tree Expert Co. worker known as “Willie” to his friends and family, was carrying a chain saw, a tree trimming pole and climbing gear as he crossed the train trestle over Elk Creek near the East State Street crossing. He was nearly clear of the south end of the trestle when he was struck from behind by the train headed from Cumberland, Md., to Cincinnati.
“He got caught on the trestle and couldn’t get off the trestle in time before he was struck,” said Trenton police Chief Tim Traud.

Clint Nigg, Butler County Coroner’s investigator, said Kingrey, who was pronounced dead at the scene, was pushed nearly 70 feet before the train stopped. Results of an autopsy performed Tuesday morning indicate Kingrey died of multiple trauma, he said. Toxicology tests were negative.

Gary Sease, a spokesman for CSX, said the train consisted of two locomotives and 40 rail cars — 18 loads of mixed freight and 22 empty containers. It was traveling an estimated 50 mph at the time of the accident, Traud said.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s investigation into the accident will focus primarily on Kingrey’s employer, said Bill Wilkerson, assistant area director at OSHA’s Cincinnati office. The Asplundh Tree Expert Co. office in Richmond, Ind., declined to comment.

Kingrey will be remembered as a fun-loving husband, youngest brother of three and a friend to many, who didn’t let congenital hearing loss in both ears limit him, said his sister Nancy McMurray.
McMurray said her brother was born premature and weighed just over 2 pounds. Because of his hearing loss, Kingrey attended two schools and was a graduate of both Meadowdale and Eaton high schools. Still, he was “always happy, cuttin’ up, and if you wanted anything done, he’d try to help you do it,” McMurray, 58, of West Alexandria said.

Kingrey also was known as one of the founders of the Lake Lakengren Ski Club along with his late father, Cletus, and for his love of breakdancing and water skiing. “He could ski barefooted. He could breakdance. He just had to move,” McMurray said with a laugh.

McMurray said Kingrey didn’t wear hearing aids but got along fine without them, though others said people had to speak loudly when talking to him, she said.

Jackson, who wouldn’t speculate on whether Kingrey’s hearing loss was a factor in the accident, said his death was a shock to everyone who knew him. Services on Friday will be especially tough because of the holidays, he said.

“For some things in life there just isn’t an answer for. We just have to trust God. Some things we just don’t understand, but what we do know is that there is hope beyond the grave,” Jackson said.

Visitation is 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Girton Schmidt & Boucher Gard Funeral Home, 226 W. Main St., Eaton. Funeral is 11 a.m. Friday at the funeral home, with burial at Fairview Cemetery in West Alexandria.

Story provided by: oxfordpress.com

Man Hurt in Train vs. Van Accident in Stevens Point

2010-12-21T12:26:00.000-08:00

A 76-year-old man is recovering from minor injuries after his van was hit by a train in Stevens Point Monday morning.

Story provided by: wsaw.com

Woman killed in car/train collision

2010-12-21T09:46:00.000-08:00

BAY, AR (KAIT) – The Craighead County Sheriff's Department responded to the scene of a fatal car and train collision just south of Bay on Monday afternoon just before 5 p.m.

According to the Craighead County Sheriff's Department, the accident happened on County Line Road, just east of highway 463 just south of Bay.

Justin Rolland with the Craighead County Sheriff's Department Criminal Investigation Division tells Region 8 News that 45 year old Linette Bradsher of Trumann was killed in the incident.

Story provided by: kait8.com

Train kills man in Kansas City

2010-12-20T14:50:00.000-08:00

Kansas City police are investigating the death of a man who was run over by a train tonight in south Kansas City.

A conductor spotted the man, who appeared to be sleeping on the tracks, but the train could not slow down in time to avoid him. The man was declared dead at the scene.

The accident occurred about a quarter mile east of Hillcrest Road on East 93rd Street near the former Bannister Mall.

Story provided by: kansascity.com

Man found dead after struck by train

2010-12-20T09:04:00.001-08:00

TRENTON — A CSX train struck a man at a railroad crossing this morning, Dec. 20.

Officials said the man is dead and the accident took place at the crossing on East State Street near Burke Street in Trenton.

Emergency crews responded at about 9:08 a.m. and called Butler County coroner to the scene.

Officials have not released the man’s name or determined why the man was on the railroad tracks but said he is a tree trimmer for Asplundh Tree Expert Co.

Story provided by: middletownjournal.com

Calif. Amtrak train accident kills 3 men in Commerce

2010-12-17T12:39:00.000-08:00

Commerce, CA– An Amtrak train hit and killed three men who were walking along the train tracks on Monday, December 13, 2010. The accident occurred around 9:00 p.m., in the 6700 block of Telegraph Road, as reported by KTLA.

Officials reported that the Amtrak train was en route from San Diego to Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, when the conductor of the train spotted the men on the train tracks, prompting him to apply the brakes in an effort to stop the train. The train, which was transporting 125 people, couldn’t stop in time and struck the three men.

L.A. County fire crews and the L.A. County Sheriff’s homicide detectives rushed to the scene, where they pronounced the men, who are said to be in their mid-20s, dead.

Investigator’s preliminary reports indicated that the victims may have been walking on the train trestle, which crosses over Telegraph Road, when they were fatally struck.

A full investigation into the train accident is currently underway.

Legal News Reporter: Nicole Howley-Legal news for California train accident lawyers.

Story provided by: justicenewsflash.com

One year later: Train accident survivor speaks

2010-12-17T09:31:00.000-08:00

SPRINGFIELD TWP. (WTVG) -- It was the moment when everything changed forever.

Two Springfield high school students, running late to school, try to beat a fast-moving train. Neither made it across the tracks.

Now, one year to the day later, their families sat down with 13abc.

Brianna Mullinger, 17, tries not cry as she talks about her best friend, Cody Brown. "He was the most loyal honest friend, in the world. We never fought. I'm not even going to look for someone else like him 'cause there is no one else out there."

After the accident, Bri was in hospital for three weeks with a shattered pelvis, broken hips and a severe leg injury that resulted in amputation. Cody was killed instantly.

Cody's parents told us, "It will never go away. You just learn to accept it a little bit. That's all we can do."
Jeff and Jodi Brown visit Cody's gravesite frequently, where they often run into some of Cody's many friends and find keepsakes they leave behind.

In October, Cody's friends and family held a memorial run in his honor. Because Cody was a baseball player, his family chose to donate all of the money raised to the high school's baseball program.
As for Bri, she says she feels good, but needs another surgery and through fundraisers, her family is still trying to raise money for a prosthetic leg.

Bri's mother Teri says, "Without insurance, it's around $50,000 for the kind of leg she wants, the kind appropriate for a young person."

All say they constantly think about that tragic day one year ago, but they're working on getting back to a normal way of life and say they're getting closer everyday.

The Ohio department of transportation is now closer than ever when it comes to building a way for vehicles to travel over those tracks on McCord road and possibly a safer way for pedestrians.

Although $13.3 million has been designated for that railroad grade separation project, it could take several years before it's complete.

Story provided by: abclocal.go.com

Pedestrian hit by light rail train in Phoenix

2010-12-16T14:08:00.000-08:00

PHOENIX (AP) — Authorities say a pedestrian has been transported to a hospital after being struck by a light rail train near downtown Phoenix.

Officials with Metro light rail say details are sketchy, but the accident occurred around 7:45 p.m. Tuesday near the McDowell Road station.

Metro officials say they have no information on the gender of the pedestrian or the extent of the person's injuries.

Phoenix police and fire department officials are at the scene to investigate the accident.

It's at least the second light rail accident in recent weeks involving a pedestrian in Phoenix.

On Nov. 29, a 56-year-old man was injured when he reportedly ran across Central Avenue against the signal trying to get to the Indian School Road platform in time to get on the train when he was struck.

Story provided by: fox11az.com

Police: NJ man caused fires, train crash

2010-12-16T09:45:00.000-08:00

HAMILTON TWP., N.J. - December 16, 2010 (WPVI) -- A 19-year-old is accused of starting two fires, stealing a car and causing a train accident in Mercer County, New Jersey.

Karl Heisler of Nottingham Way in Hamilton Township was already in police custody on an unrelated matter when he was charged with these crimes.

Heisler is charged with burglarizing and setting fire to Vincent's Pizza in Hamilton back on May 3rd. Police say Heisler broke the glass of the main entrance with a crow bar and set fire to the top of a second floor staircase.

Then, on October 29th, police say Heisler set fire to numerous rolls of carpeting inside Spierstein's Paint Store at 2021 Notthingham Way.

Heisler is also accused of taking the keys to a Toyota Scion at J&S Auto House at 2006 Nottingham Way, stealing the vehicle from the lot, and leaving it on the train tracks near the Hamilton Train Station where it was struck by a train.

Heisler is being held on the new charges in lieu of $150,000 bail.

Story provided by: abclocal.go.com

3 killed in train accident in Los Angeles

2010-12-14T12:15:00.001-08:00

Los Angeles, Dec 14 (PTI) At least three people were killed today when an Amtrak train struck a group of people walking on the tracks in Commerce, authorities said.

The conductor of the train spotted three people on the tracks in Commerce.

A Los Angeles County sheriff''s deputy Jeff Gordon said the conductor applied the brakes, but could not stop the train in time, Fox News reported.

Authorities initially reported two men were struck and pronounced dead at the scene and the third person was missing.

The third victim was found later, it said.

Gordon says homicide detectives are investigating.

Commerce is about 13 kms south of downtown Los Angeles.

The train from San Diego was en route to Union Station in downtown Los Angeles.

Story provided by: news.in.msn.com

2010 sees 590 train accidents

2010-12-10T12:51:00.000-08:00

Shahnaz Parveen

Unguarded level crossing, frequent mechanical and human failures, dilapidated rail tracks and outdated signalling system were the main reasons behind 590 rail accidents this year.

According to the Bangladesh Railway (BR) statistics, some 51 persons died while another 149 were injured in the accidents including the latest head-on collision between two trains in Narsingdi on Wednesday.

The recent train accident is considered the biggest head-on collision in ten years, BR officials said.
They said this year the number of derailments is significantly high, but the majority of the deaths occurred at unguarded and unauthorised level crossings.

As many as 53 accidents occurred this year at level crossings around the country, killing about 22 persons. Mostly, collision between road traffic and train caused the accidents. In a few incidents, pedestrians were run over by trains while they were crossing the rail track at level crossings.

The rail officials also suspect that many train accidents at level crossings especially the minor ones went unreported.

"Accident at level crossing is our major concern since we don't have any control over it," said Mohammad Shahjahan, additional director general (operations) of BR.

The ADG said, "Level crossings sprouted up without any authorisation from the railway and it is very difficult to guard them. We protested this practice many times but no one listened."

At many level crossings, the railway has not been able to provide approach warning signals and road signals, he added. At present, the country's 2855 km rail network has some 1,403 level crossings whereas only 250 level crossing gates are operated by gatemen round the clock.

In Dhaka, negligent drivers and pedestrians are making the situation even worse.

He mentioned that the railway considers activities within 50 yards of rail tracks illegal but no one listens to this warning.

Moreover, the poor condition of tracks often causes derailments.

Yesterday in Kishoreganj, a Chittagong-bound mail train derailed while coming from Bahadurabad of Mymensingh.

Railway and local sources said four compartments of the train came off the track around 3:30pm, leaving 20 people injured.

They said faults in the rail trackinadequate stone support and weak sleeper-- caused the accident.
The derailments most of the time happened on branch lines because the condition of those is worse. There were 489 derailments this year.

Though the derailments did not cause any deaths, properties of BR were damaged in the accidents, Shahjahan noted.

"Restoration of tracks is going on at many points currently," the ADG said.

About human failure, he said shortage of manpower increased workload on technical hands like locomotive masters and stationmasters and this is the reason behind human failure.

BR record shows there were eight incidents of disregarding signal this year.

In 2009, 60 people died in train accidents. Of them 51 died in collisions between train and road traffic at the level crossings. The death toll was 53 in 2008 in 893 train accidents.

On April 16, 2008, 17 people were killed and 25 others injured in a fatal accident when a Dhaka-bound intercity train rammed a passenger bus at a level crossing in Kalihati upazila of Tangail.

According to the Bangladesh Railway, around 5050 train accidents occurred in the country between 2000 and 2009.

Story provided by: thedailystar.net

Coroner: Minnesota man killed in train accident

2010-12-10T10:45:00.000-08:00

Associated Press - December 9, 2010 5:24 PM ET

DENVER (AP) - The Denver coroner's office has identified a man killed by a light-rail train as 19-year-old Harry Exner of Red Wing, Minn.

Exner died Tuesday when he was struck by a light-rail train southwest of downtown Denver. Police Detective John White says the accident is being investigated.

It's unclear why Exner was in the area, which is fenced off.

Regional Transportation District spokeswoman Daria Serna says Exner was trespassing on the transit district's property. She says there's clear evidence the train operator tried to stop, but couldn't.

Story provided by: kttc.com

Signal violation blamed for train crash

2010-12-09T09:17:00.000-08:00

Railway workers on Thursday continue their salvage operation in Narsingdi where 14 people were killed in a head-on collision between two trains on Wednesday. Photo: StarStar Online Report

The preliminary findings of an investigation team revealed that the violation of signal by the drivers of Dhaka-bound Chattola Express is the main reason of the Wednesday's train accident that left at least 14 people dead in Narsingdi.

Dhaka Divisional Railway Manager Md Habibur Rahman, the chief of a four-member probe body formed by the Bangladesh Railway to investigate the train accident, told The Daily Star that during their primary investigation they found two reasons that prompted the accident.

The two reasons--Chattola Loco masters (drivers) Rafiq Uddin, 42, and Mayeen Uddin, 30, at first ignored the signal and came to loop line (branch line) from the main track and secondly they also violated the speed limit while plying on the loop line.

As per the railway rule, loco masters are permitted to ply their trains with a maximum speed of 16 km per hour. But the loco masters of the Chattola Express ran the train with a speed of 70 km per hour, Habibur added.

At least 14 people were killed and over 100 injured, as two trains --Chittagong-bound intercity Mahanagar Godhuli and Dhaka-bound Chattola Express-- collided head-on at Narsingdi rail station Wednesday afternoon.

Terming the drivers' stance as 'mysterious', Habibur said the drivers will be questioned in this regard after they regained their consciousness.

The drivers are undergoing treatment at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital in an unconscious state.
Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain also termed the train accident as 'unusual'.

The committee formed by his ministry will submit probe report within 48 hours, the minister said adding that the report would be made public.

Anyone, if found responsible for the incident, will be brought to justice, he told reports at Setu Bhaban in the morning.

Meanwhile, the rescue operation was declared closed as no more body was found at Narsingdi Railway Station, the scene of the occurrence, till filing of the report around 1:00pm.

In the meantime, the rail communications on Dhaka-Chittagong and Dhaka-Sylhet routes resumed partially Wednesday night nearly five hours after the accident.

The authorities resumed train services on track No-3 since 9:00pm Wednesday while train movements on track number-1 and -2 remained suspended. The rail movements on the two tracks are expected to become normal by 3:00pm, Habibur said.

He also said all the trains plying on the routes were delayed for few hours as they were running through a single track.

Military personnel along with police, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and firefighters were working on the spot to clear the routes.

Four separate committees have so far been formed to investigate the accident.

On Thursday, the Bangladesh Railway formed two separate committees--one four-member headed by Habibur Rahman and another four-member headed by Signal Training and Telecommunications chief of Dhaka.

Earlier Wednesday night, two separate committees were formed by the communication ministry and deputy commissioner (DC) of Narsingdi.

Story provided by: thedailystar.net

Train on CSX tracks strikes car, kills driver

2010-12-08T09:40:00.000-08:00

By Gina Potthoff

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

A woman was killed last night when her car was struck by a train on railroad tracks in Clintonville.
Columbus police were still investigating the crash late last night. It occurred about 6:30 p.m. on the CSX tracks at Cooke Road, near Indianola Avenue.

Police did not identify the woman last night.

Sgt. Brooke Wilson of the accident-investigation unit said the woman was traveling alone when her car was struck by the train. Her vehicle was thrown a distance from the railway crossing, he said.

An off-duty Columbus police officer witnessed the crash and called authorities, Wilson said.

Story provided by: dispatch.com

Metrolink rolls out safer rail cars

2010-12-07T10:00:00.000-08:00

Metrolink officials on Monday unveiled a fleet of "crunchable" train cars designed to absorb impact during a crash, the latest in the rail agency's efforts to improve safety in the wake of deadly accidents in 2005 and 2008.

Manufactured by South Korea-based Hyundai Rotem and assembled in the Inland Empire, the cars are the safest in the country, said Keith Millhouse, chairman of the Board of Directors for the Southern California Regional Rail Authority.

They feature energy-absorbing crush zones, retractable couplers and rear-facing passenger seats, all designed to reduce impact on riders in the event of a crash. The engineering compartment is also elevated, providing enhanced visibility, Millhouse said during an event at the Glendale Amtrak/Metrolink station.

Ten Hyundai Rotem cars will be put into operation starting next week, Millhouse said. And Metrolink plans on having 137 cars — dubbed the "Guardian Fleet" — in operation by the end of 2012 at a total cost of about $250 million.

"For our passengers to be the first in the nation to have the opportunity and peace of mind to ride in these cars is very rewarding for our board and for me," Millhouse said.

The new rail cars are part of a broader effort to enhance rail safety, including investments in automotive train-stopping technology, and a network of cameras that will capture activity in and around the trains.

Metrolink's safety record has been tarnished in recent years by several fatal crashes. In September 2008, a passenger train collided head-on with a freight train in Chatsworth, killing 25 riders and injuring 135 more. The crash was the deadliest in Metrolink history.

The engineer, Montrose resident Robert Sanchez, who died in the accident, apparently failed to yield to a red light after sending cellular text messages, according to federal investigators.

In January 2005, a Metrolink train derailed in Glendale after striking an SUV that had been left on the tracks in an aborted suicide attempt. Eleven people were killed, and scores more injured. The driver of the SUV, Juan Manuel Alvarez, is now in prison serving multiple life sentences.

The accidents, which resulted in years of litigation, were on the minds of public officials and guests who gathered at the Glendale train station Monday to take a peek inside the Hyundai Rotem train cars, part of a day-long whistle stop tour.

"It was the tragic Glendale incident in 2005 that got the board of directors of Metrolink thinking outside the box — thinking how we could make our entire system safer," said Glendale Mayor Ara Najarian, who also serves on the Metrolink Board of Directors.

City of Glendale employee Jim Walls, who rides the Metrolink train from Glendora each day, lost a close friend and work colleague Scott McKeoun in the 2005 Metrolink crash. But on Monday he said he still views the train as a safe and stress-free alternative to commuting by car.

"I have been a lifelong rail fan, so I have always enjoyed riding trains," Walls said. "It is still safer than driving yourself."

La Mirada resident Rose Bourassa said she also makes a daily commute on Metrolink to her job at Glendale-based Vege Kurl, a cosmetics manufacturing company. She uses her time on the train to relax and visit with follow passengers, she said.

"This summer alone I read two dozen books," said Bourassa, 56. "Last year at this time I was crocheting scarves for Christmas. I've got a lot of new friends from riding. My kids like me better when I get home because I am not stressed from driving in traffic."

Story provided by: glendalenewspress.com

Girl struck by train will go home soon

2010-12-06T09:34:00.000-08:00

By Jim Woods
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Ed Matthews | Dispatch

Isatu Kanu, 16, watches television in the Ohio State University Medical Center. Her visitors are family friend Rhonda Harris, 15, left, and Isatu's mother, Mamusu.

Although Isatu Kanu was in a neck brace and experiencing pain in a hospital bed yesterday, she and her family know the situation could have been much worse.

Isatu, 16, was walking along a railroad track toward Olentangy Orange High School after missing her bus Friday when she was clipped by a northbound Norfolk Southern freight train south of Powell Road in Delaware County.

She has a neck fracture and 38 stitches in her right leg and is still a little woozy from a concussion. But she survived, is to be released soon from the Ohio State University Medical Center and is expected to recover fully.

"She's alive. That's the best I could ask for. God did it good," said her mother, Mamusu Kanu, 32, who was visiting her yesterday with Isatu's two younger sisters in tow.

"For a train to hit her and (her to) end up like this, you can't ask for anything else," Kanu said.

The Kanu family, who moved to this country from Sierra Leone in western Africa 10 years ago, has lived for a few weeks on Lazelle Road. The family also includes her father, Aleu Kanu, and a brother.
After missing her school bus Friday morning, Isatu didn't want to trouble her mother, who she knew was heading to work at Better Home Care on Mount Vernon Avenue in Columbus.

Isatu said she knew from riding the bus that walking along the tracks would be the fastest way to get to the high school, where she is a sophomore.

"It was my first time walking the tracks," she said.

Wearing her headphones, she walked close to the tracks, and a southbound train passed, Isatu said.
Isatu continued walking north. She had only one of her headphones on and could hear the northbound train coming behind her.

"It looked like it was going slower than usual," Isatu said. She figured she would be safe because although she had been close to the tracks the first time, the southbound train had not struck her.
Suddenly, she blacked out. "I don't remember the part of getting hit," she said.

When Isatu awoke, she saw the engineer standing over her holding a cell phone and telling her that she got hit and not to move.

Meanwhile, her mother received a phone call at work from an officer saying her daughter had been in an accident.

The officer wouldn't tell her exactly what happened.

"It was the most scary thing," Kanu said.

She thought her daughter was dead, but the officer assured her Isatu was not.

Kanu saw her daughter in the emergency room. "I was joyful, but I was crying and shaking."

On the one hand, Kanu said, she'd like to visit the crash scene with her daughter.

But on second thought, they both said, it's probably a better idea to stay away from the tracks forever.

As of yesterday, Norfolk Southern police had not charged the girl with trespassing on railroad property.
jwoods@dispatch.com

Story provided by: dispatch.com

Man Hit, Killed By Music City Star In Mt. Juliet

2010-12-03T09:19:00.000-08:00

by Mark Bellinger

MT. JULIET, Tenn. - A deadly accident interrupted the ride home for folks on the Music City Star.
A man was hit and killed by one of the trains in Mount Juliet Thursday afternoon. A Metro Transit Authority official said a man walked up onto the track and laid down in front of the train in what looks like an apparent suicide.

The accident happened just before 5 p.m. The Music City Star left Riverfront Park in Nashville and was on its way to Lebanon.

The commuter train carried 76 passengers plus the crew.

The accident happened when the train approached Mt. Juliet Elementary School and the Willoughby Station neighborhood near West Division Street.

Mt. Juliet Police investigated, along with MTA.

"The engineer did everything he could to stop the train in time. Blew the whistle. The individual was between the rails," police chief Andy Garrett said.

The accident shut down the system and the MTA sent buses to pickup stranded passengers on two trains.

Another outbound train was waiting at Riverfront Park. Pam Allen was one of the passengers.
"I just called. My mom came down to pick me up in Hermitage, so I just rode out to Hermitage and then it wasn't until later we heard what happened," Allen said.

Investigators could only tell the body was that of a man.

The accident happened in an area called a quiet zone. It's near a neighborhood, so the train is supposed to slow down and not use horns or whistles.

But in this case, engineers didn't hesitate to blow the horn.

"There was ample time and warning for that person to get off the track," Chief Garrett said.

Allen said she can't imagine being the engineer on the train or the victim's family.

"I can't imagine what the person who was driving the train felt like at this point. It's got to be traumatic for them and I really, my heart goes out to them because it's just got to be hard," said Allen.

Investigators said they won't know exactly what happen until they identify the victim and talk to his family.

The Music City Star is scheduled to run on schedule Friday morning.

This is not the first time someone has been killed on the tracks of the Music City Star. A man was killed in Lebanon two years ago. He was also lying on the tracks, and police called it a suicide.

Story provided by: newschannel5.com

Former Hannibal man dies in train accident

2010-12-02T14:54:00.000-08:00

East Peoria, IL —

A former Hannibal man was killed when he was struck from behind by a train Tuesday in East Peoria, Ill.

   KHQA TV reported the victim was identified as 32-year-old Karl A. Heskett of 1777 Meadow Ave. in East Peoria.

   Tazewell County Coroner Dennis Conover told the Peoria Journal Star newspaper that Heskett apparently was walking to work on a section of track about 12:30 p.m. and didn't hear the approaching train because he was listening to an MP3 player.

   The accident happened just south of Farmdale Road near its intersection with East Washington Street.
   The Journal Star reported railroad workers told investigators they sounded the whistle of the Norfolk Southern Railroad train and rang the bell on the engine in an attempt to get Heskett's attention. The victim was bundled against the cold weather.

   An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday, but results were not immediately available.

Story provided by: hannibal.net

Train kills pedestrian

2010-12-01T14:20:00.000-08:00

EAST PEORIA, Ill. —

A train hit an East Peoria man Tuesday, killing the unsuspecting man as he was walking to work with his MP3 player on and his hood over his ears, according to Tazewell County Coroner Dennis Conover.

Karl A. Heskett, 32, reportedly was walking down the middle of the train tracks on his way to work when he was struck from behind by the train near Farmdale Road, Conover said. According to a statement released by Conover, Heskett was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:05 p.m. The incident occurred around 12:30 p.m.

Conover said he spoke to a friend of Heskett’s who said Heskett usually took that same route to work and played music from his MP3 player during the walk. Conover said Heskett also had his hood over his head to bundle up in the cold weather. He said he does not think Heskett knew the train was closing in on him despite the train crew blowing the whistle. He said witnesses did not see Heskett physically respond in any way to the presence of the oncoming train.

“We still don’t know exactly what happened,” Conover said. “It’s still under investigation. According to the people on the train, he didn’t turn around and didn’t know the train was close to him.”

Heskett was killed by the impact “virtually instantly,” he added.

An autopsy is scheduled for today, according to Conover. In his statement, he said the Tazewell County Sheriff’s Department investigators, Illinois State Police crime scene technicians and Norfolk Southern Railroad security officers are working with the coroner’s office to investigate the incident. East Peoria Fire and Rescue also was on the scene.

An inquest into Heskett’s death will be scheduled at a later date.

Story provided by: pekintimes.com

One killed, Four injured in train accident

2010-12-01T14:10:00.000-08:00

The train collided with a trailer which was passing through the railway crossing. PHOTO: FILE

KOT ADDU / PUNJAB: One person was killed, while four others were injured when a train hit a vehicle near Kot Addu.

The accident occurred due to negligence on part of the railway crossing in-charge. The signal in-charge gave a green signal to Meher Express but failed to close the gates for the passing traffic. As a result, the train hit a trailer, which was passing through the railway crossing.

Those injured in the accident were shifted to Multan’s Nishtar hospital.

The in-charge for the railway crossing has been suspended.

Story provided by: tribune.com

Fatal Accident at Kendall Square Station [UPDATED]

2010-11-30T09:38:00.000-08:00

The MBTA reports that Red Line service has been restored this afternoon. Police are still investigating the death of a passenger earlier this morning. The person's identity and further details on the incident are not available at this time.

12:20 p.m.
The MBTA reports that a person was struck and killed by a Red Line train this morning. According to Joe Pesaturo, MBTA spokesman, the accident, which was first reported at 11:25 a.m., was fatal. No other comments were made at this time.

The Red Line is being diverted due to the accident, which occured at Kendall Square station. A bus shuttle is running between Park St. and Harvard Stations. Please seek alternate service to avoid delay.

The Cambridge Chronicle reports that the individual was a male and that according to a first-hand account posted to Universal Hub, the driver attempted to brake upon seeing the individual.

Updates will follow.

Story provided by: arlington.patch.com

Network Rail to payout $36,000

2010-11-30T09:33:00.000-08:00

A rail operator has been fined $75,000 following the death of a teenager at North-East level crossing.

Network Rail were also ordered to pay costs of more $36,000 after pleading guilty in Tynedale Magistrates’ Court, to breaking Health and Safely laws in relation to an accident that caused the death of Christopher Walton at Haltwhistle, in Northumberland.

Christopher Walton was killed when he was hit by a freight train as he carried sacks of coal over West Lodge level crossing to Blenkinsopp Estate.

Christopher was 17 at the time of the accident and was returning to his van with a colleague on January 22nd when he was hit by the train.

An investigation into the accident by the office of Rail Regulation (ORR) found that the rail company should have taken steps to reduce the risks of using the crossing, including instructing pedestrians to telephone the signaler before crossing.

On routine inspections between 2005 and 2008, Network Rail failed to recognise the risks associated with using the crossing.

Speaking the sentencing, Allan Spence, deputy chief inspector of railways at the ORR said: "This tragic incident could have been prevented. Network Rail was aware of the dangers of this crossing, and possible steps to improve safety - yet failed to take action to reduce the risks to users.“

Since the incident, Network Rail have taken steps to ensure the safety of anyone using the crossing, including installing a trackside telephone so users can get permission to cross.

Story provided by: claimsnational.co.uk

Tucson Police identify woman killed by train

2010-11-29T11:02:00.000-08:00

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - A woman is dead after being struck by a freight train Sunday morning in downtown Tucson.

Sgt. Diana Lopez told KGUN9 that an 51-year-old Glenda K. Jordon was killed in the accident that occured after 9:26 Sunday morning. The train stopped while investigators tried to determine what led to the accident, blocking several crossings along the tracks which run through downtown Tucson.

Tucson Police detectives and Union Pacific Railroad authorities are looking into reports that the woman, who was a pedestrian, may have tried to run across the path of the oncoming train.

Captain Trish Tracy with the Tucson Fire Department reminds the public to be careful around railroad crossings. It can take a train at least one mile to come to a complete stop.

"It can take at least one mile for a train to stop. Remember never to stop on the tracks when in a vehicle and be aware of your surroundings at all times. If a train is heading your direction there may not be time to move out of the way, especially if you are sitting in a vehicle in front of a stop light," Tracy said.

Story provided by: kgun9.com

CTA train hits car

2010-11-29T10:59:00.000-08:00

CHICAGO —

An accident involving a CTA train this morning in the 4600 block of North Kedzie left at least one person injured and damaged the first rail car and platform.

The Chicago Fire Department received a call just before 7:30am of a train striking a car on the CTA Brown line. Rescue workers had to extricate a person from the vehicle.

Fire Media Affairs spokesman Joe Roccasalva tells the Chicago Breaking News Center, "the car's driver was taken in serious to critical condition to Illinois Masonic, according to . The train operator was also taken to Illinois Masonic because he was shaken up."

No passengers were injured.

Story provided by: wgntv.com

Railroad Accident Attorney - Matt Dreesen

2010-11-27T05:52:00.001-08:00

Documents released in deadly Disney monorail crash

2010-11-23T10:08:00.000-08:00

LAKE BUENA VISTA -- The National Transportation Safety Board has released hundreds of documents in the deadly Disney monorail crash from 2009.

Disney monorail pilot Austin Wuennenberg, 21, died when two monorails collided at the Transportation and Ticket Center, located at the parking lot of the Magic Kingdom, as guests were leaving the park following a Fourth of July fireworks show.

One particular area of interest is the NTSB interview with the manager on duty that night. According to the interview, no one was at the radio and the supervisor was eating a meal off property.

An interview with train coordinator David Gilmore lays out how the accident happened.

Gilmore was on the clock, but off site eating a meal when he gave the okay for his coordinator to go home sick. He was still off site when the order was made for the pink monorail to start backing up.

Moments later the pink monorail collided with the purple monorail being driven by Wuennenberg.

Alan Rubino was driving the pink monorail at the time of accident. In his interview he said backing up is like flying blind at fifteen miles an hour.

"You just trust that everything is fine," Rubino said. He was still backing up when his monorail crashed into an Wuennenbrg's. "I felt the boom and I just, I was.. I didn't know what happened at first. I had no idea whatsoever."

The documents detail many aspects of the case, including interviews with officials and witnesses to train inspection data.

Story provided by: cfnews13.com

One person killed in Georgetown train accident

2010-11-23T10:01:00.000-08:00

One person was killed, another is in the hospital, after their motor home collided with a train in Georgetown Monday morning.

It happened at 8:56am on Highway 17a in Georgetown County.

The motor home was traveling west, and according to the South Carolina Highway Patrol, the driver didn't stop at the tracks, and was hit by a CSX train.

The passenger was killed, the driver was taken to a local hospital.

Story provided by: www2.counton2.com

Two dead after being hit by train

2010-11-22T08:12:00.000-08:00

Two men were killed after being hit by a train in eastern Sweden on Friday night.

* Swedish coastguard aids blazing ferry (17 Nov 10)
* Rail operators prepared for harsh winter: report (16 Nov 10)
* Swede charged for texting while driving (29 Oct 10)

The accident occurred on a stretch of track near Kilafors south of Bollnäs. Police were notified by the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) at 10.07pm.

“We we got there we found two men who were deceased,” said duty officer Peter Hultqvist of the Gävleborg County police to the TT news agency.

Police say both the men are over 30 years old, but have not yet been identified, the local HelaHälsingland.se news website reports.

According to the Transport Administration, the accident resulted in a stoppage in service along the line until 1am, causing delays for a number of trains, including the night train to Luleå in northern Sweden.

The circumstances surrounding the accident remain unclear and police have yet to determine how the men managed to make their way onto the tracks.

Story provided by: thelocal.se

WRECK: Walla Walla man dies after hitting parked train

2010-11-22T08:08:00.000-08:00

Touchet A Walla Walla man died this morning near Touchet when he lost control of his car and hit a parked train.

Ned C. Storey, 56, was headed west on Highway 12 at 6:40 a.m. in a 1992 Buick Century when he missed a curve, left the road and hit the train, said the Washington State Patrol.

The accident happened almost a mile east of Touchet.

He died at 7:32 at St. Mary’s Medical Center in Walla Walla. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.

Read more: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2010/11/19/1258767/wreck-walla-walla-man-dies-after.html#ixzz161nqmw61

Model of famous train accident to be unveiled

2010-11-19T09:38:00.000-08:00

upper southampton

Southampton Railroad Station Society will hold its first Holiday Railfest on Dec. 11.

A devastating railroad accident that took place 89 years ago will become a tangible reminder of local rail history next month when the Southampton Railroad Station Society unveils a model of the 1921 Bryn Athyn rail accident at its first Holiday Railfest on Dec. 11.

At 6 feet long, the scale model will be the centerpiece of an array of exhibits by historical and local railroad-related groups. It shows two trains that collided head-on, spilling hot coal into a remote hilly pass in Bryn Athyn. The wooden coaches caught fire, and several victims could never be identified because their bodies were too badly burned, said Charles Liberto, a society member whose father survived the wreck. The incident involved residents from several area towns, including Newtown, Upper Southampton and Bryn Athyn.

Liberto said he expects 1,000 people to attend event at the North and Southampton Reformed Church at 1380 Bristol Road in Upper Southampton. People who died in the wreck are buried in the Churchville Cemetery, which is adjacent to the church.

"We're hoping the Railfest will take off and become an annual event. Lots of notable people will be involved," Liberto said.

Relatives of wreck survivors will share their accounts of the accident, in which 27 people died and 65 were injured. Someone will portray Miss Phoebe Snow, a late 19th century mascot of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. She'll wear her characteristic white dress to prove how clean anthracite coal burned in the company's passenger engines.

Families can meet Santa Claus and enjoy an operating model train layout. Vendors will sell model trains and food. There also will be live music and face painting.

The Bryn Athyn Post Office is releasing a special stamp depicting the wreck, said Liberto.
"We're also trying to get a historical marker at the site of the wreck," he said.

The society is raising money to restore the historic Southampton Railroad Station. Tickets to the Railfest are $3; there's no charge for children 12 and younger.

Manasee Wagh can be reached at 215-949-4206 or mwagh@phillyBurbs.com. Follow Manasee on Twitter at twitter.com/manaseewagh.

Story provided by: phillyburbs.com

Southeastern Train Overshot Station by 2 Miles

2010-11-19T09:27:00.000-08:00

A major investigation has been launched into why a commuter train overshot a station by more than 2 miles due to leaves on the rails. The Southern train sped through a station at 65mph and then halted after going over a level crossing. This incident occurred on November 8 on a Hastings journey.

The driver, who was terrified in the incident, contacted signal control immediately so the alarm would be raised. He said that he put on the brakes while approaching Stonegate station, but the train wouldn’t slow down. The level crossing was closed to pedestrians and cars at the time and no red signals were on the route.

Rail bosses are shocked about the incident but grateful no one got hurt. A senior source has been quoted saying that the thought of what could have happened at the level crossing is too terrible to imagine.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch said that the train encountered poor adhesion conditions as the driver applied the brakes for a scheduled stop – while going 65mph. When the train did stop, it was 2.45 miles past the station, they explained. The investigation will find out why the train didn’t stop as normal, the agency continued, and will examine the arrangements for the maintenance and servicing of rail head sanding equipment on trains used on the line.

A separate investigation has been launched by Southeastern and Network Rail, which is responsible for the tracks. A spokesman for the rail operator noted that the train was cleared with green signals for the route ahead.

Story provided by: news.carrentals.co.uk

No injuries in truck-UP train accident Monday

2010-11-18T09:30:00.000-08:00

Scene from the accident. - Photo by Sharon Alban

William Mitchels, 45, Ogden, escaped injury Monday, Nov. 15, 2010, when he crossed the railroad tracks in front of a west bound Union Pacific train.

Mitchels was north bound at the intersection of G Avenue west of Ogden, driving a 2003 Ford F150 and trailer. His vehicle sustained approximately $15,000 in damage. There was no damage to the train.

Mitchels was cited for failure to stop at a railroad crossing, Deputy Pontius of the Boone County Sheriff's office was the investigating officer.

Story provided by: zwire.com

Sussex passenger train slides for two-and-a-half miles

2010-11-18T09:16:00.000-08:00

The train was travelling on the Charing Cross via London Bridge line to Hastings

A passenger train overshot its intended station in East Sussex by almost two-and-a-half miles.

The Southeastern London to Hastings train was travelling at 65mph when it encountered "poor adhesion conditions" as it went through Stonegate station.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has begun an inquiry into the incident which took place on 8 November.

The train also went through a level crossing which operated normally.

Unable to stop The RAIB said: "The train encountered poor adhesion conditions as its driver applied the brakes to make the scheduled stop at Stonegate station, while travelling at about 65 mph.

"The train was unable to stop at Stonegate, and came to a stand some 2.45 miles beyond the station."

The train left Charing Cross station at 0645 GMT and the incident took place at about 0810 GMT.

The RAIB said that no signals had been passed at danger during the incident and the train driver had contacted the signaller by radio to report the situation.

The investigators said they would identify the reasons for the train's inability to stop.

Story provided by: bbc.co.uk

Derailment causes 26-car pileup at Sheffield railyard

2010-11-17T14:34:00.000-08:00

An inspector surveys the remains of 26 Norfolk Southern rail cars that derailed Tuesday morning blocking tracks in Sheffield.

SHEFFIELD, Ohio -- Twenty-six cars on a Norfolk Southern railroad train derailed and crashed at the railroad's yard near Abbe Road early today, damaging track but causing little other disruption.

No one was injured in the accident that happened just after 7 a.m. Police did not order an evacuation of the area since half of the cars were empty and the others contained no hazardous materials.

No roads were affected and Norfolk Southern spokesman Randy Husband said other trains were directed to a second line between Vermilion and Cleveland.

The train was headed from Bellevue to Buffalo, N.Y., on a main line adjacent to the Sheffield yard, Husband said. The 26 cars were near the back of the train.

Husband would not speculate on whether problems with the track or the train caused the derailment.
The rail yard remains open, despite the pileup of toppled cars and loads of sand being dumped on tracks.

Sheffield Police Sgt. John Csubak said yard workers said the train was likely traveling 40 miles per hour, 10 miles below the speed limit for the area.

"It mangled up some rails pretty bad," Csubak said.

Police were on the scene about an hour, he said before turning the matter over to Norfolk Southern's own police department. That is normal for any train accident that does not involve injuries, roadways, hazardous materials on private property, Csubak said..

"This was all confined onto their own property, so there's nothing for us to actually do," he said.

Police, firefighters and railroad employees were concerned that derailed cars may have ruptured propane tanks. But the tanks, used to heat movable tracks where cars switch lines, were not damaged.

Cochrane train accident takes one life

2010-11-17T14:25:00.000-08:00

Fire and police crews attend a collision involving a train and minivan. The driver of the van, 80-year-old Elmer Friesen, passed away at the scene. Cochrane RCMP continue to investigate the accident. Photo by Jeremy Broadfield

Tragedy struck in Cochrane at roughly 10:40 a.m. Nov. 10 when a train collided with a van at the Fifth Avenue crossing in downtown, leaving a male driver dead at the scene.

A Honda Odyssey van, driven by 80-year-old Elmer Friesen, was headed south when it was struck by the east-bound train at a marked crossing and pushed approximately 800 metres down the tracks.
Hugh Pepper watched in horror from the other side of the train crossing at Fifth Avenue as the train struck the van.

“There was a big bang, and lots of impact,” said Pepper, who had headed down the tracks to a spot behind Cochrane Ford where the train had come to rest after the accident to see if he could do anything. He said he saw Friesen’s van head into the crossing as the crossing arms came down, but after seeing the train approaching fast Friesen attempted to reverse.

“By the time he got back the train was there and hit him,” said Pepper.

Businesses located along the tracks by the Fifth Avenue crossing also witnessed the horrific accident.
Jennifer Winter of Winter Photographics said while she didn’t see the accident she heard the collision.

“It was absolutely traumatic for everyone involved,” said Winter whose thoughts are with Friesen’s family in this dark hour.

Upstate NY man struck, killed by commuter train

2010-11-16T14:17:00.000-08:00

WINGDALE, N.Y. — Authorities say they're investigating the death of a 23-year-old man who was struck by a Metro-North commuter train in upstate Dutchess County.

Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials tell the Poughkeepsie Journal that the man from Pawling was struck by a southbound train around 4:45 p.m. Monday along a wooded stretch of tracks just south of the Harlem Valley-Windale station.

MTA police haven't released the man's name.

Train service was shut down Monday evening at the Pawling station, where shuttle buses transported passengers to points north until around 7:50 p.m., when service was restored.

Officials say the train that struck the man was stopped on the tracks for about three hours while emergency crews worked to clear the accident.

Story provided by: online.wsj.com

Woman Killed While Trying to Cross Train Tracks

2010-11-16T07:19:00.000-08:00

OLIVETTE, MO (KTVI - FOX2now.com) —

An elderly woman has died after her car was hit by a train. Police say it happened around 10:20 a.m. at Diehlman Road, just south of Page Avenue outside the Olivette, Missouri, city limits. St. Louis County police say the woman may have been trying to cross the tracks while the train was backing up. The train, about five or six cars long, backed into the car.

Officials say the accident appears to be accidental and that the train driver did not do anything wrong. It appears the woman tried to go around or did not see the flashing signals. There are no gates a the rail crossing.

Diehlman was shut down at the railroad crossing right at the Olivette city limits.

Story provided by: fox2now.com

Midlands man walks away from train accident

2010-11-15T10:32:00.001-08:00

NEWBERRY COUNTY, SC (WIS) – A man walked away from a train accident Sunday morning uninjured.

Newberry County Sheriff Lee Foster said off of Highway 76, just west of Prosperity. Foster said the man was pulling out of a driveway that crosses train tracks when his car was hit by a train.

Sheriff Foster said the car is totaled, but the man walked away unharmed.

No other details have been released.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating.

Story provided by: wistv.com

Thousands of train passengers stranded after power cut

2010-11-15T07:53:00.000-08:00

Taipei, Nov. 14 (CNA) Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) officials said Sunday that around 20,000 passengers traveling in central Taiwan were stranded as 49 trains were delayed or suspended following a power cut caused by scaffolding falling on the tracks earlier in the day.

The incident occurred at 6: 33 a.m. on an elevated section of track between the Taichung and Tanzih stations, according to the officials.

Although a train traveling from Fengyuan in Taichung County to the eastern county of Taitung passed the site at the time of the accident, no passengers were injured, they said.

Power was completely resumed five hours later, the TRA said, adding that 49 trains were either delayed or suspended.

The 19,600 affected passengers are not eligible for compensation as they were delayed for less than an hour -- the minimum time for claiming compensation. (By Wang Shu-fen and Maia Huang) ENDITEM/J

Stroy provided by: focustaiwan.tw

Homemade train accident kills girl, others injured

2010-11-15T07:49:00.000-08:00

A tragic accident claimed the life of a Marietta child and injured several others at a fundraising event at the Love County Fairgrounds late Friday afternoon.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol continues to investigate the accident in which 8-year-old Jaylen Wolf died, and six other children ranging in age from 3 to 8 were injured.

Patrol reports indicate the accident occurred about 5:15 p.m. when Allen Ray Hicks, 34, Marietta, was driving a four-wheeler Kawasaki, which was pulling a homemade train, inside the fairgrounds building. The train’s cars were made from 55-gallon drums that had been welded to a metal frame. Each drum moved on two wheels.

Twelve children were riding inside the drum seats when the homemade train entered a curve and several of the cars tipped over onto the asphalt floor.

Children listed as injured in the accident included Devon Anderson, 3, Marietta, who was admitted to Mercy Health Center in Marietta. Alexandria Westfall, 5, Marietta, and 6-year-old Maddie Hicks, were both airlifted to Parkland Hospital in Dallas. Condition reports on the three were not available late Saturday.

Also taken by ambulance to the Marietta hospital were Tyler Hicks, 8, Marietta, Gavin Fethkener, 4, Marietta, and Miranda Robles, 4, Marietta. The patrol said those three children were treated and later released.

Patrol reports indicate troopers are still trying to identify five other children believed to have been passengers on the homemade train when the cars overturned.

Love County Sheriff Joe Russell called the accident, “very sad,” adding he had been told the event that prompted the train ride was a fundraiser for the local Big Five program.

Funeral services for Wolf are set for 2 p.m. Wednesday in Freeman Auditorium at Turner School.

This story provided by: ardmoreite.com

Norborne woman hurt in car-train accident

2010-11-15T07:41:00.001-08:00

Kendra L. Wood, a 19-year-old Norborne, Mo., student, is at Liberty Hospital and feeling lucky to be alive today after a speeding train on Saturday afternoon crushed the front end of her Mercury Sable, spun her car and knocked it into a ditch.

“I think we’re just relieved it’s not worse than it was,” Kendra’s sister, Kaylea, 15, said Sunday morning by telephone from the family’s Caroll County home.

Kendra’s parents, Staci and Kenneth, were with their daughter at the hospital Sunday.
Wood's sister provided the following account:

Kendra, was to undergo surgery for a broken left arm and also received a gash over her left eye. Kendra, who is a waitress and an online sophomore at Maple Woods Community College, has little memory of the specifics of the accident, but did not lose consciousness after an eastbound freight hit her car.

The collision occurred at about 4:15 p.m. at a railroad crossing without gates. Kendra was driving after work to visit her boyfriend, Alex Matthews. She stopped at the railroad tracks on County Road 161, eased her car over the first set of tracks and looked west to see if a train was approaching. But the blinding setting sun obscured her view.

As she inched forward, an eastbound Burlington Northern Sante Fe train smashed her car at the front left wheel. Kendra’s boyfriend, who is a first medical responder, heard of the collision on his radio and was one of the first at the scene of his girlfriend’s accident. Kendra has just become an EMT.
LifeFlight Eagle airlifted Kendra to Liberty Hospital, and she expected to return home sometime Monday.

Kendra is the oldest of four children. She has a younger brother, 18, and two younger sisters, 15 and 11.

“Considering she hit a train, it’s really positive,” said Kaylea who was headed to church with her grandparents to pray and give the community an update.

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/11/14/2430087/norborne-woman-hurt-in-car-train.html#ixzz15MlO8WUA

By ERIC ADLER
The Kansas City Star

Man struck, killed by train in Fayetteville

2010-11-12T11:23:00.000-08:00

Source: Cumberland County Sheriff's Dept.

CUMBERLAND COUNTY, NC (WECT) - Deputies in Cumberland County say a man from Hope Mills died early Friday morning after being struck by a train.

The accident happened around 4:30 Friday morning near Cumberland Road in Fayetteville.

Deputies say Norman Anthony Jackson, 25, was pronounced dead at the scene. They say he was hit while standing on the tracks. His body was recovered near the end of Lawndale Street.

Deputies are continuing their investigation. It's unclear why Jackson was on the tracks at that time.

Copyright 2010 WECT. All rights reserved.
Story provided by: wect.com

Fatal train accident another blow for Westman family

2010-11-12T11:18:00.001-08:00

A long-suffering Westman family is coping with yet another tragedy after one of their members was struck and killed by a freight train.

Bev Bialkoski-Moore says her 32-year-old nephew, Bradley Stephen Shaw, was killed early Sunday morning.

Story provided by: brandonsun.com

Train accident leaves one dead

2010-11-11T12:29:00.000-08:00

Photo by Jeremy Broadfield

At approximately 10:40 a.m. on Nov. 10, a fatal motor vehicle collision occurred in Cochrane leaving an 80-year-old driver dead at the scene. A Honda Odyssey van, with one male occupant, was southbound on Fifth Avenue at a marked train crossing when it was struck by a eastbound CP Rail train. The impact pushed the van approximately 800 metres down the tracks. EMS and STARS were dispatched to the scene. Cochrane RCMP are continuing to investigate this matter. Photo by Jeremy Broadfield

Story provided by: cochraneeagle.com

Counselors Help Grieving Fresno High School Students After Train Accident

2010-11-11T12:26:00.000-08:00

FRESNO- Additional counselors were on-site Wednesday at Fresno High School, after 15-year-old student Damien Montenegro was killed by a train.

Fresno Police say Montenegro was walking near the Santa Fe railroad tracks along Clinton and College Tuesday, around 3:30 p.m..

"Maybe he is so used to the train that he wasn't aware that it was as close as it was," said Lt. Jon Papoleo, with the Fresno Police Department. "The conductor said he was blowing the horn and the juvenile was close enough to the tracks that when the train came by. It appears that he was clipped by the train."
The Fresno County Coroner's office says Montenegro's death appeared to be an accident. Papoleo said it's possible Damien was wearing headphones.

An autopsy is being completed Wednesday.

This is the second time a child has been hit and killed by a train in Fresno in a matter of weeks. Neighbors say, they are stunned some teens choose to continue walking along—and playing in—the railroad tracks.

"It's unbelievable how these kids don't understand how much power or how fast these trains are coming. And they honk their horn because I hear them all the time," said Lorraine Gonzales, who lives nearby.
Railroad officials say if you or your child absolutely must be near train tracks during the day, their best advice is to stop, look, listen and think before you cross the track. Also, never think you can outrun or outsmart the train.

Story provided by: kmph.com

Fresno High student hit and killed by train

2010-11-11T08:21:00.000-08:00

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Fresno family is mourning the loss of a 15 year old boy who was hit and killed by a train as he walked home from school Tuesday afternoon. A cargo train struck and killed Damien Montenegro, a freshman at Fresno High.

Police said the victim was walking on Clinton Avenue when he turned at the railroad crossing and started walking alongside the tracks. He died after being clipped by a passing train.

Montenegro's grandmother, Lorita Villa, said she'd warned him about walking near the railroad tracks. "We would always warn him, don't try to beat them like your friends did. You can never beat a train. Never," said Villa. Villa said Montenegro knew trains were dangerous, especially following the death of his friend, Stacy Frierson. The 14 year old Cooper Middle School student died in 2009, after he tried to beat a train in Central Fresno.

In the latest tragedy Tuesday, the train's conductor told police he sounded the horn but Montenegro didn't get out of the way. Damien's grandmother said his mother became worried when he didn't arrive home at his usual time. "When we found out he actually got hit by the train, it was very hard," said Villa.
Neighbors told Action News children often walk alongside the tracks going to and from area schools. "I tell them don't go walking down the railroad tracks. At least go down the sidewalk or whatever. But they do straight down the railroad tracks," said neighbor Jose Hernandez.

Montenegro's family lives only blocks away from the scene of the accident. Tuesday night, his grandmother described him as a good kid who will be missed. "He wasn't ashamed to hug you or kiss you squeeze you. He had a lot of love. A lot of love," said Villa.

Montenegro is the second Fresno Unified student hit and killed by a train in just over a month. 12 year old Daniel Madsen was killed October 5 when he tried to beat a train near Fruit and Ashlan.

Story provided by: abclocal.go.com

Family identifies teens killed by LRT train

2010-11-11T08:17:00.000-08:00

Delia Papastesis and Jamie Kootenay are shown in a provided image.

Family members are identifying the two teens killed by an LRT train as Jamie Kootenay and Delia Papastesis.

Investigators say a group of six young adults were walking east of the marked LRT crossing at 82 Street and 113 Avenue at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday, when two people who were stopped on the tracks were struck by a northbound LRT train.

Nineteen-year-old Jamie died at the scene. And his 19-year-old girlfriend, Delia was taken to hospital but later died of her injuries.

"I saw her yesterday -- we saw both of them yesterday," said Delia's sister Janice Randhile.

"All I know is she got hit by a train and I don't know why," she added.

Jamie's grandfather told CTV News his grandson was a good boy who was very respectful.

One witness who did not want to appear on camera for CTV says it appeared the couple was fighting.

She said she saw a woman being held down on the tracks by a man who had laid on top of her.

The witness said she yelled at the couple to move as the LRT train approached. She revealed that the bell was ringing at the time so the couple would have known the train was coming.

One of Jamie's friends, Nolan Shone, says he was with the couple Tuesday night and disputes the claim that the female was held down.

"Jamie wouldn't hold down Delia like that. They were both happy, go-lucky people," he said.
Family members say the couple had been dating for four years.

"I know they had their problems, but I don't know if that was the cause of what happened," said Randhile.

Police say the homicide unit is involved in the investigation to determine if the deaths were accidental or criminal. At this point, police say they have been getting conflicting reports from witnesses.
"Homicide investigators are going to be looking at all angles and all the information from the witnesses," said Edmonton Police Service spokesman Chad Orydzuk.

Both Delia and Jamie had once attended Amiskwaciy Academy.

Edmonton Public Schools says they are providing support to staff and students who may have know the pair.

Autopsies have been scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Investigators are still looking to speak to witnesses who left the scene before police arrived. Anyone who has information on the incident is asked to call police at 780-423-4567 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
With files from Sonia Sunger

Story provided by: edmonton.ctv.ca

New signs warn cyclists of track risk

2010-11-10T08:12:00.000-08:00

New signs went up last week at the corner of Cerrillos Road and St. Francis Drive, warning bicyclists about catching their wheels in the groove for railroad tracks.

The black-on-orange signs put in place Wednesday include a diagram of tracks crossing a lane diagonally, plus the words: "Tracks catch bike wheels."

Megan Arredondo, public information officer for the New Mexico Department of Transportation, said the signs were erected because of a steady stream of complaints about the hazard, including a Tuesday letter in The New Mexican from Loveland, Colo., cyclist Richard Lowinger.

"In order to avoid further accidents, we just figured we would warn the bicyclists to use caution when approaching this area," she said. "I'm told by our bicycle, pedestrian and equestrian coordinator (Tom Trowbridge) that an intersection such as the one at Cerrillos and St. Francis is pretty unique."

Many local bike riders who have fallen at the intersection would agree. For years, city planners have considered plans for an underpass, overpass or some other way of safely funneling pedestrians and bicyclists through Santa Fe's busiest intersection, made more complicated since the New Mexico Rail Runner began running more than a dozen trains a day two years ago.

The new signs come too late for Mokhtiar Bal, who injured his shoulder by falling there Oct. 30.

The 41-year-old native of India said he has occasionally commuted to work on a bike as well as ridden recreationally since moving to Santa Fe 17 years ago.

Oct. 30 was a sunny Saturday, following several days of cool weather, so Bal rode from his home on Maclovia Street to Canyon Road to see friends. On his way home, and wearing his helmet, he turned left off Cerrillos onto St. Francis and caught the front tire of his mountain bike in the rail groove.

"It slam-dunked me onto the cement on my right side, and I log-rolled," he said. "I was thrown to the opposite side — not toward the road, but toward the cement (sidewalk)."

Bal, a medical professional at Concentra Medical Centers, said he did a self-assessment and realized that in addition to abrasions, he had a limited range of motion on his right side, as if he had had a stroke. He said he tried to walk his bicycle home, but as the pain got worse, detoured to his girlfriend's house on Agua Fría Street. She took him to an urgent-care clinic.

Doctors there took X-rays, then had him come back the next day for three-view X-rays. Bal said he had no broken bones, but an orthopedic specialist said he should have a magnetic-resonance imaging (MRI) to determine if there are damaged tendons, ligaments or other soft tissue that need surgery.

In the meantime, Bal said, he's been advised to stay away from work for three weeks, until Nov. 22, to keep his arm in a sling and keep taking medication. He said he cannot sleep well or drive his truck because he lacks the strength to steer it or work its stick shift.

Ball said at least two of his co-workers have sustained broken bones falling at the same locale.

"It's ridiculous," he said. "Tourists come here and take their kids on bike trails. ... They need to do something about this poor construction or planning."

Contact Tom Sharpe at 986-3080 or tsharpe@sfnewmexican.com.

Story Provided by: santafenewmexican.com

Pearl River man drives car into train

2010-11-10T08:07:00.000-08:00

An 81-year-old Pearl River, N.Y. man drove his car into the path of a train in Westwood on Tuesday afternoon, according to officials. NJ Transit spokesperson Penny Bassett Hackett said the man did not sustain serious injuries, however was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center as a precaution.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TRACY JEFFERY

Firefighters respond to an accident just off Broadway outside the Westwood Shopping Center. An 81-year-old man drove his car into the path of a train in Westwood Tuesday afternoon, according to officials.

According to officials, at 2:40 p.m. on Nov. 2 the operator of the vehicle was driving southbound on Broadway in Westwood when he attempted to make a right turn into the Westwood Shopping Center. The man drove through the gate and into the path of the train, Bassett Hackett said. The train was about to stop at the nearby Hillsdale train station. The man was the only person in the vehicle, according to Westwood Police Chief Frank Regino.

Westwood Police and NJ Transit Police arrived on the scene minutes after the accidents, Regino said.
Regino said a light stanchion was damaged as a result of the accident.

The 35 passengers aboard the train were delayed an hour, Bassett Hackett said, and as of 5 p.m.

Tuesday afternoon Pascack Valley line trains were experiencing 10 to 15 minutes delays.

Story Provided by: northjersey.com

West Bengal train accident: 50 feared killed as train rams another

2010-11-09T08:05:00.000-08:00

Sainthia, West Bengal : Fifty people are feared dead in a train collision in West Bengal, near the Jharkhand border. Over 170 people have been taken to hospital, some are said to be in critical condition.

At around 2 am on Monday, the Uttar Banga Express coming in from New Cooch Bihar to Sealdah rammed a stationary Bhagalpur-Ranchi Vananchal Express at Sainthia station in Virbhum district, 191 kms from Howrah. (See Pics)

Casualties are feared in two general second class bogies of the Vananchal Express. These coaches and the luggage van and guard van of the train were hit. A local television channel said so severe was the impact that the roof of a bogey had been detached in the collision and was thrown up on an overbridge. (Watch:Impact severe, bogey roof thrown up on overbridge: Ticketing officer)

Relief operations are on and around 32 bodies have reportedly been removed from the wreckage. Equipment like gas cutters are being used to bring people out of the mangled heaps that the bogies are. The focus is on saving lives and the locals in the area have been helping in rescue work. There are some people coming out unscathed from the wreckage. (Watch: Locals helping remove bodies from wreckage)

PTI said Eastern Railway sources in Kolkata had confirmed that the driver of the Uttar Banga Express, M C Dey, had died in the accident, but there were no reports about the fate of assistant driver N K Mandal.

The guard of the Vananchal Express, A Mukherjee, also died in the accident.

Sainthia is about 22 km from Rampurhat and most of the injured are being taken to a hospital there. Some have been taken to the district headquarters, Shiuri. Some of the injured at Shiuri are said to be in critical condition. There is reportedly a shortage of blood.

The first accident relief train and medical van reached the spot at about 3.35 am. More trains are on their way from Rampurhat, Asansol and Burdwan.

Since the accident, the undamaged bogies of the Vananchal Express have been disconnected and the train has left Sainthia for Ranchi. A new engine has also reached for the Uttar Banga Express and the train will leave for Sealdah soon. (Watch:Unaffected bogies of Vanachal detached, train leaves for Ranchi)

Eastern Railway CPRO, Samir Goswami said a few trains – the Kanchunjunga Express, the Sealdah bound Darjeeling mail and the Kanchankanya Express had been diverted.

Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee was in Delhi and rushed to the spot as did senior officials.
Questions are being raised on how the two trains were on the same line. Also, the scheduled arrival and departure of the Uttar Banga Express at Sainthia was 1.38 am and 1.39 am and it was not clear why the train, which was to halt at the station, arrived at a high speed.

Control rooms have been opened in Sealdah, Malda, Bhagalpur and Howrah.

Helpline numbers:
Ranchi: (0651) 2600263/64, 2460488, 2461404
Sealdah: (033) 23503535, 23503537,
Malda: (06436) 222061
Bhagalpur: (06412) 4222433
Jamalpur (063444) 3101
(With PTI inputs)

Provided by: currentnewsindia.com

Train Engineer Was Texting Just Before California Crash

2010-11-05T07:28:00.000-07:00

The train driver blamed for the worst U.S. train crash in 15 years was sending and receiving text messages seconds before his crowded commuter train skipped a red light and collided head-on with a freight train, federal investigators said on Wednesday.
The Metrolink commuter train plowed into a Union Pacific freight locomotive on September 12 in Chatsworth, California, killing 25 people and injuring 135 in the worst train accident since 1993.
A National Transportation Safety Board probe has focused on whether the engineer, identified as Robert Martin Sanchez, 46, failed to heed trackside signals. Sanchez was killed in the crash.
Cell phone records show Sanchez was sent a text message at 4:22:01 p.m., and received one at 4:21:03 p.m. The accident occurred at 4:22:23 p.m., according to Union Pacific train's onboard recorders.
He received seven and sent five text messages between 3:00 p.m. and the time of the accident.
Sanchez also received 21 text messages and sent 24 while he ran a train from 6:44 a.m. to 8:53 a.m.
Since the timings were not all recorded on a common platform, the precise correlation between the events is not clear, investigators at the NTSB said.
Local TV station KCBS reported that a teenager claimed to have received a text message from the Metrolink engineer a minute before the collision.
Following the accident, California authorities temporarily banned railroad workers from using cellphones on duty.
(Reporting by Syantani Chatterjee; Editing by Peter Henderson and Sandra Maler)

Information Provided By: www.reuters.com

Minibus driver charged with causing deaths of 7 family members in August train collision

2010-11-04T14:23:00.000-07:00

Driver's lawyer denies charges, claims failed lookout, poor visibility caused fatal accident.

By Yanir Yagna

Charges were pressed Thursday against Yashar Yeshurun, a minibus driver who caused the death of 7 family members in a car accident last August.

	Minibus driver Yashar Yeshurun at a reenactment at the scene of the crash where 7 were killed. Photo by: Ilan Asayag

Yeshurun's lawyer denied the charges, saying he was not responsible for the accident.

The accident occurred when Yeshurun attempted to pass over a railway crossing on road 353 near Kibbutz Gat in southern Israel. Yeshurun tried to cross the tracks even though the barrier was down. The train conductor noticed the vehicle stuck on the tracks but was unable to stop the train on time.

Even though the crossing point had been equipped with a lookout point, the lookout on duty did not alert the train operator on time that the minibus had broken through the gate.

Aryeh and Rivki Bernstein and four of their children: their pregnant daughter Mali Gotstein, and Yohanan, Chaya and Moti Bernstein were among those killed in the accident. Also killed was Mali Gotstein's infant son, Mordechai Aharon.

The family was en route to Moshav Komemiyut, an ultra-Orthodox community where the family planned to celebrate the coming Sabbath.

Yeshurun's lawyer denied the charges on Thursday. "Yeshurun was held solely responsible, even though the lookout did not alert the train conductor on time and the signs at the place were not visible due to the sunlight."

Yeshurun expressed his remorse and said he was receiving psychiatric treatment following the accident.

"I speak with the family members every other day… they support me, but I feel very bad and am sorry for all that happened."

Story provided by: haaretz.com

train accident - latest news

2010-11-03T13:40:00.000-07:00

train accident - latest news

Bill to Increase Railroad Accident Liability Cap

2010-11-03T11:44:00.000-07:00

LOS ANGELES—A Southern California congressman introduced a bill Thursday proposing to raise the limit on damage payouts to victims of a train crash from $200 million to $500 million.

Rep. Elton Gallegly said his bill is intended to help victims of a Metrolink commuter train crash that killed 25 people and injured more than 100 two years ago.

The magnitude of the crash is testing a federal law enacted in 1997 that set a $200 million liability cap for any passenger train accident. Gallegly, whose district includes dozens of passengers hurt in the crash, said $200 million will not adequately cover all the victims' losses and medical expenses.

"The current cap will not even meet the medical needs of the survivors of one of the worst passenger train accidents in modern history," he said in a statement.

Gallegly wants to amend the law by proposing to lift the cap to a half-billion dollars in cases where gross negligence or willful misconduct contributed to the cause of the crash. The amount would be adjusted annually for inflation by the congressional secretary.

The bill would apply retroactively to Sept. 12, 2008, when a Metrolink train ran a red light and collided head-on with a Union Pacific freight train in the Chatsworth area of the San Fernando Valley. Investigators believe a Metrolink engineer, who was provided by former contractor Connex Railroad, was texting moments before the crash.

-DAISY NGUYEN

Information Provided By: MercuryNews.com

No Injuries After Dump Truck & Train Collide

2010-11-03T11:34:00.000-07:00

Image can be found at newsobserver.com

No injuries were reported as a result of a train and dump truck collision on August 16, 2010, but the wreck displaced 33 passengers aboard the Piedment 75 that left Cary at 12:02 p.m. en route to Charlotte.

Joining Morrisville firefighters and police in the accident investigation are workers with Amtrak's field operations department, Karina Romero, an Amtrak spokeswoman said this afternoon.

"Details of the tractor trailer's movement and placement at the time of the impact are still being investigated," Galloway stated in an afternoon press release.

The accident occurred just before 12:15 p.m. in a railroad crossing at the intersection of McCrimmon Parkway and N.C. 54, a 911 dispatcher reported.
The train sustained considerable damage to its front end as a result of the collision."The train will terminate where it is," Romero said. "The damage is too significant."

The dump truck driver narrowly avoided serious injury, and possibly death, when the cab of the vehicle he was driving separated from the bed when the passenger train collided with the vehicle at the railroad crossing.

"He was able to pull away upon impact," Galloway said. The train did not derail, she added.

The section of track where the wreck occurred is owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation, Romero said.

-Thomasi McDonald

Information Provided By: newsobserver.com

Amtrak train hits, kills person in Orange County

2010-11-03T11:10:00.000-07:00

Anaheim police and Amtrak officials were investigating a possible suicide by a person fatally hit by a train on October 29, 2010.

The incident took place on La Palma Avenue west of East Street, an Anaheim police official said.

No further details were immediately available.

Metrolink trains in Orange County are expecting delays of at least an hour, according to a Metrolink Twitter feed.

- Sam Quinones

Information Provided By:LA Times

Third Train Death Shows Danger of Locomotives

2010-11-03T10:34:00.000-07:00

Police say they can only speculate how 26-year-old Rockville resident William Donahoe ended up underneath a freight train in North Bethesda last week, making him the third since July found dead on train tracks in or around North Bethesda.

Investigations are made difficult by the nature of train strikes, where police say it can often be nearly impossible to identify the victims or how they came to be found along the tracks that run through the center of Montgomery County.

Cpl. Dan Friz, a spokesman with the Montgomery County Police Department, said Donahoe's death was no different. "Due to the severe damage to the victim's body detectives are having a hard time making determinations," he said.
Police identified Donahoe by a tattoo, said police spokesman Capt. Paul Starks. He said no foul play is suspected and detectives are uncertain about the events leading to his demise.

-aruoff@gazette.net

Information Provided By: gazette.net

Westwood car-train collision injures man, 81

2010-11-03T07:22:00.000-07:00

WESTWOOD — An 81-year-old Rockland County man was injured Tuesday afternoon when his car was struck by an NJ Transit train off Broadway near Washington Avenue, authorities said.

Paul Pesce of Pearl River, N.Y., was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center to be treated for minor injuries after the 2:40 p.m. accident, said Penny Bassett Hackett, an NJ Transit spokeswoman. The train struck Pesce’s Ford Crown Victoria after he drove it through a downed crossing gate as he was trying to turn into a parking lot from Broadway, Bassett Hackett said

The train was on its way to Spring Valley, N.Y., from Hoboken with 35 passengers aboard, none of whom were injured, Bassett Hackett said. Northbound traffic was delayed about an hour after the accident, though trains were running on schedule by 2:40

— William Lamb

Information provided by: northjersey.com

OTTAWA — Three young men were killed by a train in Montreal early Sunday morning while trespassing in an area police call “very dangerous.”

2010-11-01T11:39:00.000-07:00

OTTAWA — Three young men were killed by a train in Montreal early Sunday morning while trespassing in an area police call “very dangerous.”

The men were hit by a train around 3:00 a.m. while walking along the train tracks near Place Turcot on land owned by the Ministère du Transport Québec.

Montreal police Constable Anie Lemieux said the initial investigation suggests the men were on the train tracks to paint graffiti.

“It’s a very dangerous area,” Const. Lemieux said. “It’s hard to hear trains coming in. No one is supposed to be there because it is private property.”

Two of the victims were pronounced dead on the scene. The other was rushed to hospital, where he died.

Two other men survived the encounter with the train and were treated for shock.

Police believe the men were between the ages of 17- and 20-years-old. They cannot yet confirm whether all the men were from Montreal.

Investigators remain on scene to piece together the events leading to the deadly crash.

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2010-10-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

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2010-09-28T12:23:00.000-07:00

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